For The Love Of Raven
by JamesSunderlandsPillow
Summary: Following Beast Boy and Raven's mutual break up, Starfire decides to do everything she can to help make Raven feel better. It seems to work, maybe more so than either of them realizes, as they both begin to question their feelings for one another. (Slow burn Starfire/Raven. I do not own Teen Titans).
1. Pizza Money

Jump City, daylight.

Things are business as usual for the Teen Titans. They've just stopped Dr. Light from attempting to nefariously illuminate innocents with his ill will, and now the heroes have decided to celebrate with lunch at the local pizzeria.

However, things aren't entirely copacetic. No one can remember if it's Beast Boy's turn to pay for lunch, or if it's actually Raven's.

"I've only had one slice of pizza? And it's purely vegan! You should pay for it!" Beast Boy contends as he picks up another slice of said pizza. "Okay, this will be two, but you get my point."

Raven rolls her eyes and snarls her lip. "It doesn't matter. It's _your_ turn to pay for lunch, so just pay up already so we can go home."

"Well what if I forgot my wallet at home? I think I left it in my other leotard," Beast Boy retorts, realizing he may have actually forgotten his wallet as he dons a worried expression while digging through his pockets.

Raven groans. "Ugh, well I don't care! I'm not paying for it when it's not my turn!"

The other three Titans: Cyborg, Starfire, and Robin simply awkwardly watch as their friends continue their contremps.

"Jeez, what are you making such a big deal about this for? It's like, twenty bucks? What do you need that money for, stupid Pegasus books?" Beast Boy argues.

The Azarathian girl grows wide-eyed at the sudden reference to a certain saccharine comic book franchise, but shakes it off to return to rebuttal form with a familiar sour glower.

"It doesn't matter, Beast Boy! You have to learn to take more responsibility, and start considering how your actions affect other people!"

"Oh, here we go again," BB bemoans as he rolls his eyes now and leans his head on his hand, preparing to endure the same spiel he's heard for what feels like a million times now.

Finally, Starfire decides to intervene. "Friends, can we not simply resolve this conflict and get back to eating the earth pizza?" she pleas with a nervous smile.

Beast Boy meets her with indifference, Cyborg and Robin look to her with pained, almost sickly grimaces, and Raven…

"No! I'm not letting him weasel his way out of paying!" Raven defends.

"Was the weasel thing a pun? Because that's not fair. You know I wanna laugh at that…" Beast Boy responds.

"Ugh… This is exactly what I mean…" Raven adds.

"You know, I get that you two are all broken up and all now and ya wanna throw shade like Shado… But _somebody_ has to pay for the pie," Cyborg reminds them, partly because the waiter keeps looking at them with a disgruntled expression.

"Oh, Cyborg…" Robin says with a face-palm, fully understanding just what kind of angst is now about to ensue.

Yes, Beast Boy and Raven have recently decided to "just be friends." BBRae is a thing of the past, for better or worse. The two just couldn't work through their irreconcilable differences, but were mature enough to mutually agree on moving on and starting fresh.

But sometimes, like right now… It's easier said than done.

Raven's eye twitches like she may literally explode, and the other four Titans, and even disgruntled waiter, all cower in fear as they anticipate what is sure to be the proverbial fury of a woman scorned.

But, it doesn't come. Raven simply pulls out of her seat, all while wearing a hateful scowl directed at Beast Boy.

"I'm going for a walk," she simply says, and she slowly but _surly_ makes her way to and out the door.

The others cautiously fix their postures, and exchange concerned looks with one another.

It's Robin to break the awkward silence. "Let's just… go Dutch on this one," he suggests as he reaches into his pocket for some money.

Beast Boy frowns at Cyborg. "Nice going, chrome-dome. Why'd you have to bring up our break up?" he scolds.

"What? Don't turn this around on me, string-bean! It's not my fault you forgot cash!" Cyborg retorts. "Although I really do think it was Raven's turn to pay for the thing…" he adds, and he too begins searching his person for some simoleons.

However, Starfire's empathetic nature hasn't allowed her to look anywhere else but to the very door that her friend Raven left out of.

Robin notices this. "Star?"

Belatedly, she responds. "Oh, I feel so bad. I think I should go talk to her," she thinks aloud, and she begins to pull herself out of her chair.

Robin stops her, gently taking her by the wrist. She looks to him, he looks to her… and he can't help but feel the tension that comes with every form of intimacy- big or small, that manifests between the two.

Starfire, she isn't ever sure what to make of it. She's heard of the "feelings," she's even seen it between Beast Boy and Raven, as well as Jinx and Cyborg. But she still doesn't know what exactly the feeling of the feelings is, or if this is what that is, or if it might just have something to do with what the earthlings call "indigestion" from the pizza.

For a moment, they just gaze into one another's eyes…

But then, Robin finally says what he needs to say.

"Starfire… You gonna help us throw down on this pizza?"

…

She blinks a few times, confused- a little disappointed even by his lack of compassion for Raven. She brushes it off though, literally and figuratively, as she slips out of Robin's gentle grasp and begins to follow Raven's trail.

"I am sorry. I cannot let Raven be upset all alone," she explains to the boys. "I also think that I too have left my money in another leotard," she mutters to herself.

With that, she exits the establishment, and Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy are left to face a foe most formidable…

Disgruntled waiter, and his bill.

He clears his throat, "Ahem," while staring at the boys all hoity toity like. The three exchange more concerned looks, realizing they may not have enough money to pay the overworked, underpaid background character enough for his service.

"Uhm… Any chance we can get a superhero discount?" Beast Boy nervously asks.

"That depends, you guys part of the Justice League?" disgruntled waiter replies.

They consider their response. "I was in a movie with the Justice League?" Cyborg answers on their behalf.

"Then no," the waiter coldly responds.

"Rats…" Robin curses.

Beast Boy thoughtfully digests his blurb. "Was that another pun?"

* * *

A few blocks away from the pizzeria, Raven makes her way down the sidewalk, refusing to acknowledge any of the pedestrians that pass her by.

" _Stupid Beast Boy… Of course he'd leave his wallet at home on pizza day. I guess I should've seen that coming,"_ she thinks to herself.

" _But I guess I could have maybe handled that better. God, Raven… You should've known better than to have ever even dated him in the first place. I knew things wouldn't work out in the long run. And now it's just making things weird for everyone, and even worse... it's ruining our friendship…"_

She escapes from her internal monologue long enough to pay attention to the crosswalk before her, and notices two girls crossing the street… holding hands…

" _Hmm. I wonder if those girls have ever had these problems?"_ she asks herself.

"Raven! Raven, wait!" she hears a familiar voice call out from not too far off.

She turns around to see Starfire chasing after her, drawing peculiar looks from the locals.

"Oh, Starfire…" Raven mumbles as she facepalms, feeling her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

"Raven! Oh, thank goodness I have caught up with you…" Starfire says through panting breaths.

Raven meets her with a piteous expression. "Why did you run after me? Please don't say-"

"Are you alright? Do you wish to talk about the awkward that has occurred with Beast Boy and the others?" Starfire asks.

"Of course," Raven grumbles.

She shifts back to her usual unenthralled demeanor, all while Starfire meets her with her usual, almost childlike puppy eyes.

"Awkward isn't a noun, and no. I don't want to talk about Beast Boy; I don't want to make things any weirder or more dramatic than they already are…" Raven stoically tells her.

Starfire considers her response for a moment, and settles for the following. "Friend Raven, I do not wish to bring you more discomfort. I only wish to help you feel better. I care about you," she says with a soft smile.

They just look at one another for a little while, retaining their respective deadpan and endearing expressions. The crosswalk sign changes from 'stop' to 'go,' and the nearby pedestrians begin shuffling through.

Raven looks away from Starfire's smiling face to guiltily eye the ground, and she sighs. "Starfire, this is just something I have to work through on my own. You just wouldn't understand," she tells her, and she turns to join the strangers in walking across the street.

Starfire sorrowfully stands in her same spot for another short while, and steels herself as she wonders what she can say or do to help her friend.

But as she watches the cloaked Titan distancing further and further, her emotions get the better of her. She begins to hurry after her, failing to realize that the crosswalk sign has again shifted from 'go' to 'stop.'

"But, I wish to understand! Raven, come speak with me and we shall-!" she calls out, but she loses her train of thought as a car horn begins blaring.

She and Raven both turn their attention to the commotion, and realize that a large, old-timey van is speeding towards Starfire.

"Starfire! Look out!" Raven shouts, and she instinctively channels her powers. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" she calls as she uses her telekinetic abilities to encompass the van and bring it to a timely halt.

All the while, Starfire helplessly watches on, paralyzed with shock. But she soon realizes that no harm will come her way, thanks to Raven and her powers.

The two teenagers look to one another. "Are you alright?" Raven asks Starfire, the concern resonating in her voice.

Still in somewhat of a trance, Starfire takes a moment to register her words. "Yes, I am alright."

They then turn their attention to the van that almost careened into her, and rush over to make sure its passengers are safe. Inside the van there is a man, a woman, and _eleven_ children, all stunned with mortification.

"Are you and your many children okay?" Starfire asks the father.

He's still very much shaken. "Every time we leave Royal Woods, something bad happens!…" he complains.

With no apparent physical harm done, the girls leave the family to their ramshackle van. It's Raven to start walking away first.

"Wait! Raven!" Starfire begins again, and the other girl groans as she turns back to face her.

"Starfire, I already told you-"

"I was… I just wanted to say… Thank you for saving me. That van is as large as it is ugly," Starfire tells her.

"We can still hear you!" the man in the van hollers.

Raven disregards his ambivalence to address Starfire's appreciation. Despite being, well, _annoying_ sometimes… she can't help but admire her genuine compassion for others.

Even so, she can't actually tell her that. It'd just make her feel too weird. So instead, she just softly smiles.

"It really is an ugly van."

Starfire smiles back, enjoying some small satisfaction in seeing Raven do the same. However, her nirvana is cut short as Raven's smile fades in favor of her familiar somberness

"I'll see you later, Star," she glumly tells her teammate, and she resumes walking away until she's disappeared in the crowd of strange faces.

Starfire can't help but linger, hoping that maybe her friend will come back and decide she's ready to accept her invitation to help her work through her sadness.

But she doesn't, and even Starfire knows when to let someone be left alone.

However, not all is lost.

" _I will give Raven the space tonight. But I will not give up on her. I will do everything I can to help her through her break up with Beast Boy. That is what friends are for, after all!"_

* * *

 **Hey everyone, thanks for checking this out. This is my first time dabbling in Titans fiction, so any and all feedback would be appreciated.**

 **That being said, for those new to my work, here's a secret: I'm the king of AN's, so here you go.**

 **First, if you're wondering where this fits in the canon, it's up for you to decide. I like both TTG! and the 2000's Teen Titans, and drew inspiration from both shows, so there's that. I will be taking a mostly comedic approach with this thing though, just so you all know.**

 **Second, I'm going to do the best I can to handle BB and Rae's break-up as well as possible. We all know BB's the coolest guy on the block. I'm also going to try and do Robin justice (that's kind of a pun, heh heh), which will probably be the hardest thing in my writing career, considering everyone seems to find at least one thing to hate about him. I digress.**

 **Third, if you're scratching your head over the not so subtle Loud House cameo, sorry. I couldn't resist. That's my main fandom:p**

 **Again, feedback is greatly appreciated, be it reviews, comments, or even PM's. Thanks again for reading, and please stay tuned for more!**


	2. Making Things Awkward

Titan Tower, Night.

Raven is alone in her bedroom, likely going through her books to pass the time and avoid further awkwardness with her fellow heroes.

The others are in the living area, watching on as Beast Boy and Cyborg engage in battle using some post-apocalypse tabletop game, arguing over whether or not the former gets to reroll for damages or not.

Starfire is deep in thought as she keeps peering back and forth between the festivities and Raven's bedroom door, a door that hasn't opened for a few hours now.

And Robin? He just tries not to make it obvious that he's totally pining for the Tamaranian princess.

" _Okay, just ask her if she wants to maybe go for a walk. Yeah! That's perfect! Beast Boy and Cyborg are distracted with their dumb game, Raven's probably going to be in her room for the rest of the night… This is the perfect chance to finally make a move on her!"_ he thinks to himself.

" _So… Why aren't I?"_ he asks himself. Even so, the truth is irrefutable. He's just too nervous.

"Ah! Crit! Total crit!" Cyborg blurts out as he rolls a ten with his die.

"No way! You had to've cheated somehow!" Beast Boy argues.

"How could I have cheated? You watched me roll?"

"I don't know?! You rigged the dice somehow with your... Cyborg... powers…" he stammers, realizing himself just how ridiculous it sounds.

Cyborg just smiles. "All I know is, that's one more XP for-"

Raven's door creaks open.

Everyone stops what they're doing to look to it, and slowly, the resident Azarthian steps out of her bedroom to join them. She's uncharacteristically timid, as she pussyfoots her way over to the table to join everyone. While a few days ago she would have unquestionably taken a seat by Beast Boy, tonight she opts to sit alone on the nearby couch. It's a comfortable distance from the others. Not too close, not too far.

Despite this, everyone seems to forget they're _staring_ at her like a bunch of dunderheads, which doesn't help much.

It's a little annoying for her, but she realizes that things will only become weirder if she responds to the tension with frustration.

Instead, she decides to establish the pretense that this is just a normal evening at Titan Tower, and that there's no reason things need to be, as Star called it earlier, 'the awkward.'

"What are you guys playing?" she simply asks.

Everyone exchanges surprised looks, and then returns to facing her.

"Uhm, War in the Wastes…" Beast Boy cautiously begins. "It's a RPG. You know, like-"

"Like role-playing; got it," Raven finishes.

The others just watch as the two gaze at one another, both conveying the same look of understanding. It's touch-and-go for a moment, but Cyborg decides to help everyone ease back into the spirit of fun.

"Uhm, you missed it, Rae. I just killed Beast Boy's last elite, and now he's stuck with his grunts. And it doesn't help that I have his leader pinned down here in the-"

"Uhm, no," Beast Boy interrupts. "You forgot to mention the part where I totally annihilated three of your dudes with one character... in one turn!"

Raven forces a little half smile. "I'm sure I'll catch on," she tells them.

With that, the boys pick back up on their gaming, and Robin resumes thinking of how to approach Starfire.

" _Okay, so there's still a chance here for me to ask her. Just, ease into it. Be casual,"_ he tells himself.

Just as he is about to open his mouth and speak up…

"CRIT!" Cyborg shouts again, this time wracking everyone's nerves. "That's another crit! And that's another of your grunts dead! Man, I am good!"

Rather than expectantly firing back with a petulant argument, Beast Boy glances at Raven out of the corner of his eye, all while wearing a somber expression.

"Actually Cyborg… Why don't we call it a game? I don't think I can afford to lose anymore people this round," he concedes.

It surprises Cyborg, and everyone, really. But he sees the way his best friend looks at his ex-girlfriend, and realizes just what's up.

"Oh… Alright," he simply responds. He brightens up a little though with his next suggestion. "Hey! I know! Why don't we all pop in a movie? I hear 'Carol Likes Luna' is a good one!"

"Uhm, here in a little bit, bro. I gotta go- brush my hair…" Beast Boy unconvincingly tells him, and he stands to make his way out of the room.

The others watch on with piteous expressions, and then, _of course,_ they look to Raven.

She heavily sighs, making her frustration apparent. "Before anyone says anything… No. I _don't_ want to talk about it."

Cyborg and Robin shrug to one another, but Starfire just frowns. It pains her so to see her friend this way.

Deciding she needs a moment to clear her head, which is likely what her ex-boyfriend is doing right now, Raven stands up to make her way into the kitchen.

The others watch on, then all look to each other. "Man, I hope things never get like that between us," Cyborg quips, playfully nudging Robin.

He ignores his sophomoric innuendo. "I get what you mean, though. I hope those two figure things out soon," he sullenly says, even though he is much more concerned with how he really wants to ask Starfire out for a walk before anything else can-

"Oh, I must see if I can get her to confide in me. She has to be hurting, even if she acts as though she is not," Starfire proclaims, and she makes her way to follow Raven's footsteps.

"Dang it," Robin cusses to himself.

"Hey," Cyborg begins with a privied grin, "You'll get your chance sooner or later," he encourages his fellow Titan.

"I hope so. I can fight bad guys and save the world without breaking a sweat, but a pretty girl makes me turn to mush. How is that fair?"

"Yeah, well, you better figure out something soon. Girls like Star get swooped up before too long," Cyborg tells him.

* * *

In the kitchen, Raven uses her powers to pour herself some juice from the fridge. What she doesn't know, is that Starfire is quietly standing beneath the entryway, watching her as she thinks of how to approach this.

" _She seems so distraught. I hate to think that I could ever feel the pain she does now with the Earthlings' heartache."_

She's not too far off either. Raven pours juice with more ennui than a young woman ever should, sighing a sigh that absolutely crushes Starfire.

" _Oh, I cannot take it!"_

"Raven?" she cautiously utters, just audibly enough to attract her attention.

Without a word, Raven looks to her, and she lets out another, this time weak, sigh.

"Starfire…"

"I know you will say that you do not wish to talk about it," she begins, "but I only wish to help you. _Please…_ Talk to me… Tell me how you are feeling…"

Raven meets her with her familiar stoicism at first, but ebbs as her true feelings show in the form of a deflating frown.

"Believe me, Starfire, I wish I could just talk to you about this. I know you want to help…"

She looks up from the tiles of the kitchen floor to look into Starfire's beckoning green eyes, her own displaying nothing but sadness.

"But maybe I just need to keep to myself for a little while. I only make things worse when I try to act like things are okay between me and Beast Boy, but it's obvious he just wants to avoid me…"

Starfire frowns. "No, Raven. That is not true. You _both_ make things awkward," she contends, earning her a glare from Raven. "Wait, that did not come out right."

"It is true that things with you and Beast Boy may not be so good now, but I think it can be better than before," she starts again.

"That's nice," Raven indifferently responds, "but I think I just want to be left alone either way. I think I'm just going to go back to my room."

She begins to walk away, but Starfire persists.

"Wait! What about the movie?"

"It's probably stupid," Raven retorts, pressing forward.

"It _is_ probably stupid, but it could be fun!" Starfire insists. "Or maybe we could brush each other's hair! That is, assuming Beast Boy isn't using one of our brushes. I do find green hairs in mine sometimes… Or maybe we could bake cookies! Or maybe-!"

"Starfire," Raven pleadingly says as she turns to face her again. "Please… _Please…_ Just leave me alone…"

…

Starfire's heart sinks as she watches Raven walk away from her again for the second time today. She continues down the hall, and disappears into her bedroom just as she did when she returned home earlier.

"Oh… I wish she would come back out…" Starfire depressingly thinks aloud.

And, surprisingly, Raven _does_ come back out, and she even comes back to the kitchen.

Starfire can't help but brightly smile, but Raven's demeanor hasn't changed even slightly.

"Uhm, I forgot my juice," she explains, and she gets her beverage off the counter before doing just as she did before and escaping into her room.

"Darn it…" Starfire sorrowfully curses, alone again.

" _There must be something I can do to cheer her up. There just has to be!"_ she thinks.

"Starfire! You need to see this!" Robin cries from the living area.

She perks up upon realizing the desperate tone in Robin's voice, and hurries back into the living area.

* * *

Meanwhile, Raven has just closed her bedroom door, and sets her juice down on her dresser before she takes a seat on her bed.

" _I know she means well… But she wouldn't get it. She's never been in a relationship, and… Well…"_

She reconsiders her thought.

" _She is empath though. One of the good ones too. And I know she cares…"_

" _Maybe I'm being too stubborn. Maybe I should just… talk to her. I mean, what's the worst that can happen?"_

She glances over at her mirror, not enough to get lost in it, literally or figuratively, but enough to see her sorry self for just a moment.

" _Do I really want to sit alone in my bedroom for the rest of the night?... Again?"_

A knock comes at her door.

"Uhm, Raven. It's me. Beast Boy…"

Her cheeks become flushed, and her heart starts racing. _"Uhm… Come in,"_ she tries to say, but it's as if her larynx can't muster the strength to actually voice the words.

She stands up from her bed, paces to the door, stops, steps back to get a drink of juice, then goes to actually answer the door.

She opens it, and sure enough, Beast Boy is standing outside.

"So, what's up?" he asks, nervously scratching the back of his neck.

She doesn't answer right away, her own anxiety getting the better of her.

"Not much…"

They both look at some really interesting spots on the floor before Beast Boy speaks up again.

"Uhm… I kind of need to talk to you about something," he tells her, trying to make eye contact without reducing to a puddle.

"Sure…" Raven dejectedly says, gesturing him to come in.

She returns to her spot on the bed, but Beast Boy chooses to stand as he steps back and forth on his heels while pocketing his hands.

"So… Read anything good lately?" he asks to help break the ice.

"This story by some Sunderland guy. Nothing good," she answers.

Then, there's silence.

…

Finally, the palpable tension becomes too much for Raven to stomach.

"So… What did you want to talk about?"

Beast Boy takes a deep breath. "Okay, it's like this," he begins. "I'm sorry. I was a jerk yesterday, okay?"

"You… were kind of a jerk just now," Raven boldly tells him.

Neither of them gets excitable though.

"Yeah, it was uncool of me to bail like that, it's just… I didn't want to make things weird again," Beast Boy explains.

"Things are gonna be weird, Beast Boy. I mean, we broke up. Now we just have to move on," Raven claims.

"I guess so," Beast Boy weakly responds, looking down to the floor again.

Raven waits a moment to see if he'll say anything more, but it appears he's finished.

So, she decides she is too.

"Is that all?"

Beast Boy uncomfortably winces, and again nervously rubs his neck.

"Do you hate me?" he skittishly asks.

…

It momentarily stuns Raven, who can only look to him with her resonating remorse as she tries to think of a halfway decent response.

But, he starts drawing conclusions anyway, as he is known to do.

"It's okay of you do. I know I can be a stupid jerk sometimes…"

And while she can't help but stare, he has to avoid eye contact.

He steps towards her door.

"I'll leave you alone now. I know that's what you want-"

"Beast Boy!" she somewhat excitedly says as she stands up from her bed, and he looks back to her.

"You're not a stupid jerk," she sincerely says to him. "Well, okay. You are a stupid jerk… But in a good way."

He smiles at this. "So you don't hate me?"

"No…" Raven guiltily replies, and she steels herself for a moment before saying what she truly wants to say.

She meets his eyes, and he doesn't look away.

"I just want us to be able to talk to each other again. I want things to be okay between us…"

He thinks her words over, then composes a response.

"I do too, Rae. And I want everyone to stop acting weird about it," he says somewhat jokingly.

It gets her to crack a small, brief smile.

He does the same before following up. "I just want things to be back to the way they were."

…

As her chest swells with conflicting emotions, she thinks back to what Starfire said to her not long ago.

"Well, maybe things can't be the way they were before… But maybe… maybe they can be better," she tells Beast Boy.

He smiles at that. "I'd like that."

She smiles too, feeling the weight of some of her misery beginning to fall from her shoulders.

But then, Cyborg suddenly makes his way in through the door.

"Raven, you've gotta-"

He sees the former couple standing there together, and realizes again just what's up.

"Uhh… is this a bad time?" he asks.

The two smile at each other again. "It's fine, Cyborg," Raven responds on their behalf.

"Alright, well we got a bit of a situation," Cyborg tells them before making his leave.

Raven softly smiles at Beast Boy once more before deciding to follow Cyborg.

"One more thing," her ex-boyfriend says, and she turns to face him.

"It really was your turn to pay for lunch," he tells her.

He cracks a smile though, and she has to too.

"Shut up," she simply says, and they make their way out together to see what's the matter.

* * *

In the living area, the Titans gather around the monitor to find there is an emergency.

"What's going on?" Beast Boy asks.

"Take a look at this," Robin says, pointing to bleeping dot on the radar.

"What is it?" Raven now asks.

"I don't know, but I can't get it to stop bleeping, until someone buys batteries for the remote," he answers. "Now take a look at _this,"_ he continues, switching the screen over to a video stream.

Everyone gasps upon seeing what Robin has to show them.

"Is that-?" Raven starts.

"It can't be?!" Beast Boy finishes.

They all look to Starfire, who is perhaps the most perturbed of all.

"Blackfire…"

* * *

 **I'm sorry if I went overBOARD with the tabletop stuff (Oh I kill me). It was mostly inside jokes for my friend.**

 **And no, 'Carol Likes Luna' is NOT a good one… But you should go watch, er, read it anyway.**

 **What will happen between Starfire and her villainous sister? Will she ever be able to get through to Raven? Have I completely turned you off from this story by creating a Robin side plot?**

 **Find out next time on TitansBall Z!**


	3. Sisterly Advice

Jump City, Night.

Komand'r, the Tamaranian princess better known as Blackfire, is no stranger to hives of the scumful variety. And yes, that includes Earth bars.

Which... happens to be where she is now. She's talking to a short, red-haired gentleman, batting her eyes at him knowing full well the poor fool is about to buy her a colorful drink.

Starfire makes her way into the establishment cleverly named 'The Stinky Clam,' and she begins scanning for her older sister. She finds her, and wastes little time in approaching the two patrons.

She taps the gentleman's shoulder to get his attention.

"Hey, pal. I'm kind of busy here," he grudgingly says before realizing it's actually an attractive female trying to get his attention.

He does a double take, looking back and forth to the two sisters, and smiles like an idiot.

"Well, hey there! You must be her sister, huh?" he astutely guesses.

"Indeed I am," Starfire answers before glowering at Blackfire. The latter then huffs as she crosses her arms and snobbishly turns away.

"Now I'm going to have to ask you to leave us be," Starfire adds.

"Hey, I dig redheads and- uhm, purpleheads. She doesn't have to leave," the sleazeball responds.

"She's talking about _you,_ knucklehead…" Blackfire bluntly states.

Knucklehead looks to both the girls and sees their unamused expressions, and grimaces as he stands up and makes his exit.

Leaving Starfire to confront her sister alone.

She takes the now empty seat beside her sister, and Blackfire gestures her hand to get the bartender's attention.

"I still want my drink," she tells him. "I guess _I'll_ just be the one paying for it, now…" she complains before turning her attention to her sister.

She turns her scowl into a sneer though. "Unless you've got cash, little sis?"

"Uhm, I do believe I've left my money in my other leotard, but that is not why I am here, Blackfire," Starfire apologetically tells her.

"Of course not. Why ever would you want to make a casual visit to your big sister?" Blackfire quips.

"It may have something to do with you always trying to destroy me and my friends… Or trying to get me in trouble with the Tamaranian council for your crimes… Or making fun of my eyebrows for not being- as the Earthlings call it, 'On fleek," Starfire defends.

"Mmm, got me there," Blackfire simply says back as she's given her colorful drink, which she promptly takes a sip of.

"Speaking of trouble, just why are you here in Jump City, anyway? What are you planning this time?" Starfire inquires.

"Well, believe it or not, I was just looking for a fun night out in the town. You know how bad girls get," Blackfire slyly answers, almost like this is all some big joke to her.

Starfire narrows her eyes. "I do not believe you," she asserts.

"Well, believe whatever you want, kid. I'm not in the mood for fighting tonight," she claims, taking another swig of her party beverage. "What I _am_ in the mood for however, is dancing," she adds, standing up from her barstool to make way for the dance floor.

"Now, if you're done chasing off skeevy guys and making me buy my own drinks, why don't you make like a Glorbrom and beat it," she finishes before walking away.

Starfire just scowls at her as she does, but then her communicator buzzes.

*Starfire, do you copy?* Robin asks from the other end of the line. *Did you see Blackfire? Is everything alright?*

*Do you wanna go see a movie with Robby on Friday?* Cyborg teasingly chimes in.

*Dude, not cool!* Robin retorts.

"I did not understand that last part, Cyborg. And Robin, yes," Starfire replies.

*Yes to the movie?* he excitedly asks.

"No. I mean, yes, I have seen Blackfire," Starfire answers. "She claims that she is not planning to do any evil, but I am still not sure. I will let you know soon enough."

*Oh… Well… I guess just keep us posted,* Robin disappointedly responds. *We'll be ready to barge in if you need back-up.*

"Thank you," Starfire expresses, and she then stands to follow her sister.

…

Meanwhile, the other Titans are at the local comic book store, looking around at the various memorabilia.

But they're _totally_ ready to be back-up. Definitely. No doubt.

"What the heck is a 'Heitomos?'" Beast Boy asks as he studies a comic book with this name on the cover.

"Either buy something or leave," the cashier, a tall blonde haired girl named Lora as her nametag reveals, scolds.

Beast Boy morphs his head into that of a donkey. "Either buy something or leave," he mocks.

…

Back at the bar…

Blackfire has made it to the dance floor, and begins losing herself in the music. Starfire is close behind though, and after ungracefully shuffling through strangers in the crowd, she catches up to her older sister.

She just kind of stands there watching her though, and she slowly begins to feel a little embarrassed as she realizes that… maybe… _maybe_ Blackfire was telling the truth.

The dark-haired sister finally notices Starfire standing there and watching her like an idiot, and she frowns.

"Ugh… Are you still here?" she groans.

"Uhm… I…" Star stammers. Her stupor is interrupted by another buzz from her communicator.

"Robin?" she answers, turning away from her sister.

*Nice going Beast Boy… Now where am I supposed to go to buy Pretty Pretty Pegasus- I mean, _Eternal Darkness_ comics?* she hears Raven complain from the other end.

*Hey, it wasn't _all_ my fault,* Beast Boy responds.

"Darn it…" Starfire moans as her communicator mutes again. "Friend Raven and Beast Boy are fighting again…"

She glances back at Blackfire, who has gone back to dancing, and then looks to the bar, where there aren't any patrons seated.

With a sigh, she decides to go have a seat to think things over.

* * *

Meanwhile, the other Titans are walking away from the comic store.

"It wasn't all my fault. Cyborg and Robin were fighting over that Crowd House book," Beast Boy defends.

"Hey! It's a good show with tasteful humor and wholesome values!" Cyborg insists.

"Yeah!" Robin agrees. "Plus I totes ship Landon with all the girls," he mutters to himself.

Raven rolls her eyes. "You _still_ made a bit of an ass of yourself," she tells Beast Boy.

BB morphs his head into that of a donkey again. "I thought I was funny back there."

The other boys chuckle. "Yeah, you had that blonde chick steamin'" Cyborg laughs.

"It was hilarious when you told her to kiss your ass," Robin adds.

Raven can't help but smile now too. "Okay. It _was_ funny. But still…"

"Ahh you know you can't stay mad at me, mama," Beast Boy begins, but he and Raven both grow tense upon his slip of his old pet name for her. "Er, Raven," he corrects.

"Uhm… All good," she simply tells him, smiling a little smile to convey this is true.

He returns the gesture, and they continue along.

* * *

The bartender, a fellow named Otto, approaches Starfire.

"What will you have?" he asks her.

She meets him with doe eyes, but relaxes a little as she contemplates her options.

"Uhm… I will have a Gibble Flaxhorn. Make it a double," she asks.

Otto meets her with confusion, understandably failing to recognize her foreign request.

She sighs upon realizing this. "I will have an Earth water… Make it a double…"

Again, he raises his brow, but he shrugs it off as he goes to get her drink.

While she waits for him, Starfire reflects on her woes.

" _I do wish I had a companion who understood my feelings of loneliness… It is quite sad being the only Tamaranian on Earth sometimes."_

She glances back at Blackfire, who is still getting down with her bad self.

" _I do suppose it is better than being like my sister though. I would rather be alone sometimes than all the time."_

She then eyes her communicator, and thinks about how her friend Raven must be feeling blue herself over Beast Boy.

" _Oh… Poor Raven. Here I am feeling sorry for myself, all while she must be feeling even more saddened."_

" _I do owe it to her to try and cheer her up. She has been the bestest of friends to me, much like my sister should have been."_

" _Hmm… But how can I do this when she insists on being so distant?"_

Her reverie is broken by both the bartender returning with her glass of water, as well as the sound of familiar snide laughter coming within earshot.

"Ha ha ha ha! Oh that's too fun!" Blackfire chuckles as she returns to the bar, and she opts to assume the seat beside her sister.

She scornfully eyes her up and down for a moment, but she ebbs on her judging and gestures the bartender to get her another drink.

"Yeah, they don't have Flaxhorns on this planet. Darn shame," she quips.

Starfire meets her comment with uncertainty, but eases up herself as she returns to sulking.

"I do admit that I sometimes envy your carelessness, older sister," she confesses.

Blackfire amusedly huffs. "Hmph. Is that so?"

The two meet eyes for a moment, but then shift their focus to their drinks.

"What's the matter? Boy trouble?" Blackfire ripostes after taking a sip of her drink.

Although incredulous about her uncharacteristic display of concern, Starfire decides to give Blackfire some benefit of the doubt. After all, she has nothing better to do until her friends get here.

"It is… not the boy trouble. Well, not entirely," Starfire begins.

Blackfire raises her brow, then smirks. _"Girl_ trouble?"

"Yes. Yes, you could say that," Starfire answers, failing to pick up on the innuendo.

"Dang," Blackfire says with surprise in her tone before taking another drink. "I guess I'm not shocked, though."

Starfire takes a drink of water, then continues. "It is my friend, Raven-"

"Girl with the cloak? Wow. I was just messing around, but now you've got me interested," Blackfire teases.

Again, Star doesn't catch on. "She has recently been feeling very sad-"

"Shocker," Blackfire quips.

Star furrows her brow, but keeps going anyway. "As I was saying… She has been the sad, and I do not know how to make her feel better. I have tried everything!"

Blackfire takes another drink, but seems thoughtful. "First of all, I'm not going to ask what you mean by 'everything,' because now I'm forming some bad images in my head," she says with air-quotes. "Secondly, can you blame her? You're not exactly subtle."

Starfire deviously turns to her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean you're a spaz," Blackfire bluntly states. "If she's anything at all like me, then she probably gets annoyed when you go on and on like: 'Do you feel bad? Talk to me! I can help!'" she mocks.

Starfire thinks it over to herself. "Is it true? Have I been 'a spaz?'"

She then turns back to Blackfire. "Okay… So let me ask you this, sister. If I am to get Raven to talk to me about her despair, what do I need to do?"

Blackfire takes yet another sip of her colorful beverage, scrunching her face up in a way that shows she's _actually_ considering her dilemma.

"Alright. You really want my advice?"

Starfire perks up. "Yes! Very much so!"

"First of all, never listen to anyone who's had this much to drink. Second of all… Put yourself in her shoes."

"Her shoes? But I do not believe we are of the same shoe size?" Starfire questions.

"No, you goon. Not literally," Blackfire retorts. "I mean, stop being so in your face about it. She's not all... happy and peppy and stuff like you are," she condescendingly points out. "She's a total emo. You know who emos open up to?"

Star meets her with a dumb expression.

Blackfire sighs. "Other emos!"

"Ohhhhh," Starfire responds.

"Yeeeeah," the other girl says with a sly smile. "See, when you act like yourself, you just make her cranky. But if you act more like her…"

"She will talk to me about the sadness!" Starfire exuberantly says.

"Riiiight," Blackfire affirms.

Starfire takes a moment to digest her sister's advice, but visibly brightens up at the thought that she may be on to something.

"Oh, thank you, Blackfire! You have given me the best idea!" she happily cries.

She chugs the rest of her water, and then excitedly stands up. "I am going to go put myself in Raven's shoes!"

Blackfire rolls her eyes at this.

Starfire blushes through her smile. "I mean… I am going to put myself in Raven's shoes… I guess," she says with an emo drawl, then she winks.

Blackfire smiles. "Well, you go do that, Star. Just don't expect me to be this nice-"

"Buzzed?" Otto the bartender interrupts.

"...the next time I see you."

The two sisters share one last smile, and then Starfire practically skips out of the building as giddily as she can.

Blackfire finishes off her drink, still grinning to herself. "That was kind of nice, I suppose…"

Then she notices Otto smirking at her like an idiot.

"So… Your sister is into feet and other girls, huh? What's _your_ thing?"

Blackfire meets this with disgust, but then eyes her empty drink.

"Uhm… Whatever gets you to fill this thing up, dude."

He smiles as he takes the glass, and she sickly winces to herself as he walks away.

"I seriously need to reevaluate my life."

* * *

"So, Beasty Boy, let me ask you something," Cyborg whispers to his proclaimed 'bro' once the two have fallen behind Robin and Raven a bit.

"Sure. What's up, brah?" he responds with his usual chipper attitude.

"What were you and Raven talking about earlier? You know, before the _emergency,"_ Cyborg says mockingly.

Beast Boy thoughtfully winces. "Uhm… We had a good talk. Just… like, how we both wanna be friends again."

Cyborg nods. "I got you, dude. Like, all jokes aside, I'm here for you, bro."

"S'all good, fam," Beast Boy says with a smile.

Meanwhile, Raven and Robin are having a similar conversation. "So, sorry if I'm overstepping boundaries or whatever," the team leader begins, "but what happened between you and Beast Boy, anyway? You guys were so happy for a while?" he asks with concern.

She sighs. "Well… I guess we just got to be too much for each other. Like, I tried to indulge all the stuff he's into, like video games and cartoons, but it just isn't me. And trying to talk to him about the dark arts proved to be… unavailing..."

Robin glances back to make sure the other two are a comfortable distance away, and they seem to be too occupied with their current conversation to pay any mind to their friends.

He turns back to Raven. "Well, sorry I brought it up. And sorry things didn't work out."

She eyes the ground. "It is what it is," she simply says.

As the group presses forward, they systematically catch eye of a familiar face nearing them, the face of their very own Starfire.

"It's Starfire!" Robin points out.

She hears him, but she can only focus on Raven. She still seems so dejected.

" _Okay… Here goes…"_ she thinks to herself, remembering everything that her older sister told her.

"Starfire," Robin begins as they all catch up with one another on the sidewalk. "How did it go? Did you take care of Blackfire?"

The redhead glances at Raven again, but gives Robin her attention. "Yes. I mean, well, I did not have to resort to violence."

The others are visibly skeptical. "So… What happened?" Cyborg asks.

"Well…" Starfire starts, seeing the almost pleading looks in her friends' eyes. "We… talked."

Visible skepticism turns to visible _disbelief._

"What do you mean you talked? What did you talk _about?"_ Beast Boy inquires.

Starfire thinks it over for a moment, and ponders how to word things without giving so much away. After all, Blackfire did tell her not to be a spaz.

…

"She… was not looking for a fight. She simply wished to buy drinks from strange men," she answers. Then she looks at Raven, and sees all the conflicting emotions glimmering in her dark eyes.

"I guess…" she adds, trying to imitate the Azarathian's goth drawl.

Raven raises a brow at this, but the others simply shrug, apparently sufficed by Starfire's vague explanation.

"Well, I suppose that's all the excitement the city has to offer us tonight," Robin states.

"Come on, let's get back home and watch that dumb movie," Beast Boy suggests.

"Aw yeah. I smell popcorn!" Cyborg cheers.

"That's me. I farted," Beast Boy jokes, earning him grimaces from the others.

They all start to walk again, except for Robin, who panickingly bites his nails. "Uhm, or…! Or we could just go for a walk? Maybe we could like, go in pairs even? Just… random… unplanned groups of two…?"

Starfire scoffs. "The walking sounds _lame,"_ she bluntly states, and Beast Boy and Cyborg laugh.

"Shyeah! Who goes for walks?"

"Losers, that's who!"

And with that, they forget all about Robin's suggestion.

"Night walks are not for losers," he mopes to himself as she kicks his foot up, but he concedes and follows the others anyway.

…

A few moments of witty banter between Cyborg and Beast Boy about their usual topics of discussion pass, and all the while, Starfire keeps glancing at Raven out of the corner of her eye.

Raven notices, but she doesn't say anything at first. She knows Starfire is eccentric.

But eventually, eccentric becomes a little annoying, and she has to say something.

"Uhm, is everything alright, Star?"

Starfire perks up as she realizes Raven has spoken up, but she ebbs her enthusiasm in favor of more mock-melancholy.

"Hmm? Oh… It is just life. I wish not to talk about it," she woes.

Raven is taken back by her response, but doesn't get the opportunity to provide any follow up, as Star hastefully picks up her pace to get ahead.

" _What the heck is that about?"_ Raven wonders.

Then, once she's gotten far enough ahead, Star cracks a little smile to herself.

" _I believe I may just make this work."_

* * *

 **I Googled Glorbrom, and there is no such thing. Well, now there is, but it's some Tamaranian aminal that you can use your imagination to come up with an image for.**

 **Also, I'll only apologize once more for all the subtle inside jokes I make. The rest of you can just be confused while me and my loser friends laugh it up.**

 **If you're worried about Blackfire, don't fret. She goes to an AA meeting after this. Seriously though, I originally had her being a little more "in character" and providing more of an antagonistic role in this chapter, but I decided to have her show some of her good side instead. I'm a sucker for that stuff.**

 **Anyway, I hope you guys and gals are having fun, and I hope you'll enjoy what's to come. I do have this story mapped out to the end, and I'm eager to kick things into the next gear. That's all I'll say for now;)**

 **Thanks as always, true believers.**


	4. Mood Swings

Titan Tower, Daylight.

Raven wakes up early to find everyone else is still asleep in their beds. She decides to take advantage of the peace and quiet though to claim the television to herself though, and do what she always does when she gets opportunities like this…

Watch some Pretty Pretty Pegasus on Fletnix.

A faint smile encroaches on her face as she loses herself in the bright flashy colors, childish humor, and simplistic story telling of her favorite cartoon. It's not as great as the original series from the 2000s, and most everyone else in the fandom despises it for it stark departure from the source material; but she doesn't care. She _likes_ the reboot.

"Heh… Heh heh heh," she sort of laughs as the show continues.

She doesn't even notice Starfire peeking out of her bedroom door. The Tamaranian princess sneaks over to the end of the hallway to check the living area, and sees Raven engaging in her pastime.

And a smile now encroaches _her_ face as she realizes two things.

One: this show is pretty stupid, and it's pretty funny that Raven actually likes it.

And two: she has the perfect opportunity to put her plan into action.

She giddily hurries back to her room, and Raven is in too much of a Pony induced trance to even notice any of this.

Starfire comes back to her safe little spot at the end of the hallway, this time wearing a purple cloak just like Raven's. She tries to put on a serious face, but giggles because of how much fun she's having putting herself in Raven's shoes. Or, cloak rather.

She shakes herself of this though as she remembers that it's all for the love of Raven, and that she has got to be the bestest of friends to her.

So, she takes a deep breath, and morosely maneuvers her way over to the couch to join her.

"Sigh," she says, rather than actually sighing.

It scares the bejesus out of Raven, who hops off her butt before desperately trying to change the channel.

"Jeez! Uhm, hey Star. Uhm, I was just flipping through channels while waiting for the news to come on… Yeah…" she insists with a nervous look on her face.

But Starfire is able to maintain her composure as she takes a seat on the couch as gloomily as possible.

"It is indeed a dreadful show. So much is dreadful," she moans, quickly glancing at her friend from the corner of her eye before focusing on the nothingness before her as an emo would.

Raven becomes visibly perplexed by her unusual behavior, and the fact that she's wearing one of her cloaks, and takes a seat back on the couch,

"Uhm… Starfire, why are you wearing that? And what are you doing up at... six in the morning?" she asks as she peers at the nearest clock.

"Time is merely a construct, as is all of existence. We are merely dust that floats in the wind," Starfire continues.

Raven gets wide-eyed at her… depressing remark.

"Are you feeling okay?" Raven now asks.

Belatedly, Star responds. "I am ambivalent to all things, just as you are, friend Raven." She then glances at her friend again, perking up ever so slightly. "Perhaps you would wish to talk about things that upset us now."

Raven considers her words for a moment with a puzzled look on her face, but it soon shifts into an angry frown as she begins drawing conclusions.

"Okay, Starfire. What is going on?" she sternly asks.

"I do not understand what you mean," Starfire tires to defend, but Raven isn't buying it.

"What is this? Is this some kind of joke?" she continues, growing more excitable as she stands up. Starfire just skittishly watches on as she gets on her tirade.

"Did Beast Boy and Cyborg put you up to this? Oh, I bet they're laughing it up right now, huh. They probably have a hidden camera or something around here, don't they? Is Robin in on this too? Because I have dirt on him, you know. I've seen his browser history before, and let me tell you- you think what I like about Triple P is weird? You should see what _he_ looks up for Crowd House! I'm going to find that camera, and I'm gonna find those three goons, and I'm going to take their stupid little joke, and shove it right up their-!"

"Raven!" Starfire shouts to cut her off. She stands up from the couch and pulls down her hood to reveal her face, then defensively raises her hands up. "It is not a joke of the practical nature! Please put the table down!"

Raven looks to her, then to the table she telepathically lifted up for smashing purposes, then back to Starfire. With an apathetic expression, she eases the table down, then points her finger at Star.

"Alright, start explaining," she orders.

Starfire sighs for real this time, then takes a seat back on the couch.

"Raven, I am sorry for deceiving you, and for taking your surprisingly fragrant cloak," she pitifully begins, sneaking in a quick whiff of said cloak. "I wished to influence you into talking to me about your sadness over Beast Boy, and Blackfire suggested that I behave more like you to do so… She also suggested that I not heed the advice of someone who has consumed so many frosted beverages."

Raven relaxes, and the frown on her face is replaced by a look of concern. "Starfire… Why would you do that?" she asks.

"Because she also said that I am what the earthlings call 'a spaz.' And, after much thought, I have realized that this is true…" she bemoans, eyeing the ground.

Raven's eyes convey a certain new sadness. "Starfire… That's… That's ridiculous," she says. Starfire then looks up from the ground to meet her eyes, and Raven takes a seat on the couch a comfortable distance from her.

"You may be a little… _eccentric_ sometimes, but you're not a spaz," she tells her. Another little smile comes to her face now, but not because of cartoon ponies. "I'm flattered that you would go through so much trouble to get me to open up to you about my feelings. It means a lot to me… But Beast Boy and I have actually talked about this."

"You have?" Starfire says, brightening up a little.

Raven simply nods. "Things might be a little weird for a few more days, but we've decided to do our best to try and make things work as friends…"

It's her turn to eye the ground now as her cheeks redden just a little. "Actually, I told him the same thing you told me about how we could make things better."

Starfire smiles wide now. "This is most wonderful, friend Raven! I am very happy to hear that things will be alright for you and Beast Boy!" she proclaims.

Raven coolly shrugs. "Yeah, well… What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, I guess," she says.

For a moment, the two girls just smile at one another, but Starfire then brightens up _even more_ as she giddily shakes her hands.

"Ooooo! We should celebrate!" she suggests.

"Celebrate? For what?" Raven replies, still keeping it chill.

"For the resolution of the courtship conflict!" Starfire answers. "Ooo! I know! We should go to the- wait…" she stops herself, still ever so joyful.

"What? What is it?" Raven eggs on, her curiosity genuinely piqued.

Starfire bites her bottom lip she's so excited. "I know the perfect surprise! It will be a most enjoyable and F. O. N. fun experience! You will love it!" she promises.

"It's F. _U._ N… But, uhm…" Raven starts, her excitement nowhere near as high as her confidante's.

But, she sees how thrilled Starfire is just to have learned about Raven's resolve, and she is truly touched by her gesture to try and help out, just as she said to her.

So, even though it may prove to be a mistake, she decides that the day is young, things are copacetic, and maybe there _is_ reason to celebrate.

"Alright, I'm interested. Let me go change into a good cloak and we'll head out. But, where are we going?"

"I cannot say, or it will spoil the surprise," Starfire tells her. "I can promise you that it will be a most enjoyable and-"

"Yeah, you already said that," Raven interrupts.

"Oh… Well I will remind you that it shall," Starfire endearingly says.

The two girls exchange another smile, and then make their way off the couch for Raven's room.

"You really must tell me what laundry detergent you use," Starfire inquires on the way.

* * *

Later that day, Starfire and Raven are walking through a crowd of people on their way to the cleverly named Beach Amusement Park. The sun is shining, and everyone seems happy to be here, including Starfire. She smiles widely, waving at some of the more inviting pedestrians who pass by, oohing and awwing at a few of the amenities.

Meanwhile, Raven grits her teeth and tries to keep her complete lack of enthusiasm to herself.

" _Whatever this is that Starfire has planned… It can't be worth being in this heat. And, oh man, why is everyone here so happy? What do you all have to smile about? Especially the children… I hate kids."_

Eventually, she decides she has to speak up, even if it risks potentially hurting Starfire's feelings.

"Ugh… Starfire… What are we doing here?" she groans.

"You shall soon see," Starfire gladly answers.

Raven rolls her eyes at her vague answer, but Starfire excitedly perks up.

"Yes! It is this way!" she proclaims, and she begins rushing ahead. Raven doesn't quite get as hasty though, and just mullingly follows.

Starfire stops herself to look back to her slow moving companion, and raises a brow. Raven returns the gesture with indifference, wearing her usual listless expression.

"Come on! You will love it! You'll see!" Starfire insists, and she goes back to take Raven by the hand and _make_ her hurry along.

The momentum makes Raven's hood fly back, and she gets wide-eyed by the sudden excitement. "Woah! Starfire! Chill out!" she hollers, but it's fruitless, as Starfire keeps pulling her along until they've gotten to the center of the amusement park.

Once they've halted, Raven scowls at Starfire, who is still as happy as can be.

"Okay, enough games. Tell me what we're doing here!" she demands.

Starfire giggles a little into her hands, then points at a sign. "Look!" she as she does.

Raven follows her finger to the sign.

 **You're never too old to believe in MAGIC!**

"What the-?" Raven says with a disgusted look on her face. She then wanders her eyes to some similar propaganda plastered all around.

 **Believe in yourself, and you can believe in ANYTHING!**

 **Anything is possible with the power of FRIENDSHIP!**

 **Please do not leave your pets and children UNSUPERVISED in your vehicle!**

Beyond all of the signs, there are streamers, balloons, T-Shirt vendors...

And cutouts of colorful Pony princesses.

…

Starfire is anxiously shaking her fists against her face, barely containing her enthusiasm.

"Do you love it?!" she asks.

Raven… Well…

"What the heck is it?" she asks while retaining her sickly grimace.

"It is Pega-Con!" Starfire cheerfully announces. "It is the single largest gathering of the Pretty Pretty Pegasus fans... 'Bronies,' that the West Coast has to offer!"

Raven is absolutely stunned. Yes, she loves Triple P, but… she does _not_ love conventions. She does _not_ love the heat. She does _not_ love the people. And she does _not_ love any of this.

And she decides that, she isn't going to be shy about letting Starfire know how she feels.

"Are you kidding? I-"

Before she can get another word out, Starfire is tightly squeezing her with a great big hug. The poor goth's eyes practically bug out.

"Oh, I am so glad you like it! I was worried we would not be able to make it in time for the Q and the A, and I was not even sure you would be willing to come with your earlier despodence… But we are here! Thank goodness!" she exclaims as she releases Raven from her loving death grip.

Raven just eyes her up and down for a moment as she allows the air to come back to her lungs, thinking about how she could probably set this whole place on fire if she wanted to.

But… That would make Starfire sad. And the girl did apparently put a lot of thought into all of this…

So, she buries her hatred within the darkest corners of her brain, mustering all the strength she can to endure what is sure to be an experience that completely contrasts with 'F. O. N. fun.'

"Okay, Star… Where do we begin?" she reluctantly asks while gritting her teeth.

"Ooo! Let us purchase the breaded wieners! We will need thorough sustenance to last us the whole day!" she declares.

"The whole day?..." Raven heartbrokenly repeats.

But before she can say anything to maybe change the course of events, Starfire is whisking her away again to go get those wieners.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at Titan Tower…

Shortly after waking, Robin makes his way out of his bedroom and into the hallway. He takes a deep breath as he approaches Starfire's door.

" _Okay… I can do this. You're Robin! You've beaten up all the toughest villains! You were Batman's sidekick! You almost had your own spot in that movie instead of Cyborg!"_

He knocks on the door. "Starfire? Are you awake? It's me, Robin."

No answer.

He raises a brow, and tries knocking again.

"Star?"

He decides to go ahead and open the door, and discovers that no one is inside expect for her pet alien worm, Silkie. The little dude is happily sleeping away at the edge of the bed.

"Huh," Robin utters before closing the door and returning to the hall. He makes his way into the living area, where he finds Beast Boy and Cyborg making blueberry waffles and discussing one of their usual Bro topics.

"...That's why you gotta start the quest and _then_ send an SOS flare. That devil unicorn ain't no joke," Robin catches Cyborg saying.

"Eh, that's why I stopped playing. It's pretty embarrassing telling your friends you keep getting killed by a pony," Beast Boy replies.

"Uhm, hey guys," Robin intervenes. "Have either of you seen Starfire?"

"Why? You finally gonna man up and ask her out?" Cyborg quips.

"I- I may have thought about asking her to hang out later. Not that it's any of your business," he defensively responds while closing his eyes and folding his arms.

"Awww… Robin and Starfire, sittin' in a tree! N-" Beast Boy begins before being cut off by the team leader.

"Shouldn't you be singing a song about waffles or something?" he retorts.

"Well, that is something I would do," he thoughtfully says. He then smiles at Cyborg. "You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"

"Aww yeah! Waffle song time!" Cyborg agrees, and they proceed to break into song celebrating their favorite breakfast dish.

Robin disregards them to continue his newest investigation though, which leads him to Raven's door next.

" _Maybe she knows where Starfire is."_

"Raven! Are you in there?" he yells, but he gets no response. Like before, he opens the door to see a girl he's looking for is gone, much like what happens to that one author on the internet that everyone loves.

"Really? No Raven either?" he thinks aloud.

"What're you doin', yo?" Beast Boy asks as he makes his way over with Cyborg.

"I'm trying to find Starfire, but I can't find her or Raven anywhere," he reveals.

"Half the tower isn't everywhere, but alright," Cyborg ripostes.

"Maybe they went out?" Beast Boy wonders.

"Out? You mean- like 'out?'" Robin worriedly responds. "Is that why you guys broke up? Because she likes Starfire?!"

"What? Nah, dude," Beast Boy asserts.

"Alright, I'm gettin' to the waffle of this," Cyborg states as he pulls out his communicator.

"Uhm, lame pun, dude," Beast Boy lets him know.

"I wasn't making a pun," Cyborg refutes. "I just can't stop thinking about waffles."

He dials up Starfire…

*Hello!* she cheerfully greets.

"Starfire, hey," Cyborg says back. "Listen, I'm standing here with the boys, and we're trying to-"

*I am unable to get to the electronic communication device at the moment. I am very sorry to have missed your call! However, if this is an emergency, or you simply wish to talk about the kitties, leave your name, number-*

"Dang it," Cyborg groans as he hangs up. "She didn't pick up."

"Weak," Beast Boy comments.

"Alright. I'll try Raven," Robin says, and he calls her up.

She answers after a few rings.

"Robin!" she greets with desperation in her voice.

"Raven! Where are you at? Are you with Starfire?" he frantically asks.

"Oh, I'm with her," she responds from the amusement park. She stands a safe distance away from Starfire, who is buying some overpriced T-shirts from a vendor named Hatoralo.

"Are you guys out? Like, 'out' out?" Robin neurotically adds.

"What? Do you mean-? No, you idiot! We're at the amusement park."

The three gents all exchange peculiar expressions.

"I thought you hated the amusement park?" Beast Boy questions.

"I do!" Raven barks.

"Then what are you doing there?" Cyborg asks.

Raven steels herself as she dreads answering.

"We're at Pega-Con…"

"Pega-Con? You mean…?" Robin begins.

Then, as expected, the three boys laugh hysterically at her expense.

She just pinches the bridge of her nose as thinks about fire and burning things again.

"You're at a convention! What a nerd!" Cyborg teases.

"Listen you imbeciles," she sharply retorts, "I'm doing this for Starfire, so if any of you mentions this ever again, I swear to Zod I'll-"

"Raven!" Starfire exuberantly calls out from the vendor's stand. "Raven!"

"Oh no…" Raven moans.

"Uhm, is everything alright over there?" Beast Boy asks.

"Sure. If alright had another meaning," Raven complains.

"Raven!" Starfire shouts again as she makes her way over with two colorful T-Shirts. "I have used money to barter for these commemorative body blankets!" she adds as she waves them in Raven's face.

She looks at the shirts, and barely refrains from letting a "bluh" escape her mouth.

"You do wear a small, correct?" Starfire asks.

"I don't wear tie-dye," Raven bluntly states, but Starfire gives her the shirt anyway.

She puts her own on, all while smiling her same bright smile. "Oh, how wonderful! We can now be Pegasus Pals!"

"Joy…" Raven sarcastically utters.

Starfire keeps staring at her and eagerly smiling. "Well?"

"What?" Raven tartly rebuts.

"Aren't you going to put it on?"

Despite everything that Starfire has done for Raven, she just can't keep this up. The heat, the people, yeah. They're terrible. But tie-dye T-Shirts? A line has to be drawn somewhere.

"Starfire…" she starts.

But… She stops smiling. Instead, the Tamaranian girl is quivering her lower lip, and looking at her with the most pitiful puppy eyes a girl can work up.

Those big, glossy green eyes...

…

Raven rigidly frowns, but she removes her cloak and throws on her stupid colorful Pegasus shirt in almost one swift movement.

Starfire excitedly claps as her smile returns to her. "Yay! We are now Pegasus Pals!"

From the other end of her communicator, Raven can hear the other Teen Titans laughing hysterically again.

*Pegasus Pals! That's too funny!*

Raven eyes the other girl with true apathy.

"Please don't say that ever again."

* * *

 **Fletnix strikes back, b-words. Ah yeah. And Kirin sucks. Just sayin'.**

 **Now try and guess what my favorite food is and I'll mail you a No-Prize. I'll give you a hint. It rhymes with "Awful." You know, like all of my jokes.**

 **Okay, so for reals now, the next chapter will see a little more significant development. I wasn't lying when I said Slow Burn y'all. Haven't you read all my other stuff?**

 **However, I'm shaking things up this time around with my yuri formula. So stay tuned to find out how;) Thanks for reading as always, and stay thirsty, my friends.**


	5. Pegasus Pals

"I hate you," Raven mutters to the big pink bunny.

The last few hours have been _excruciating._ Starfire would take her hand and yank her all around the theme park, telling her to eat wieners to keep her strength up, making her attend 'the Q and the A' sessions with voice actors way too eager to answer questions about their characters, taking way too long in the bathroom, asking to take pictures with the grown men in plastic animal costumes...

Under any other circumstances, Raven would have literally reigned hellfire on this whole pony plastered thing…

But, for reasons even the mystic and supernatural cannot explain, she just doesn't have it in her to hurt Starfire's feelings by telling her enough is enough.

And it used to be so easy…

Even so, here she is yet again having her arm almost pulled out of socket just so Starfire can take a picture with a dude in a big pink bunny costume.

She giddily took what the earthlings call a selfie with the pathetic plastic character, and then the jerk- who is _way_ too happy to be doing this for a living, politely asked Raven if she'd like a picture too.

With her signature rigid frown, she responded with the those three special words.

"I hate you."

Sadly, she isn't able to get any schadenfreude from the guy's true expression, because all she can see is his big stupid bunny helmet smiling at her like this is the Black Hole Sun video.

"Ooh! Raven!" Starfire suddenly blurts out.

"What is it now?" the other girl miserably moans.

"Look over there! Something extravagant is happening!" she gleefully hollers as she points out a crowd of people gathering around a stage.

Raven snarls. "If this is another Q&A, I swear I'm literally going to shove my foot up someone's-"

"Let us go see!" Starfire declares, once again taking Raven by the hand to whisk her away.

"Stop pulling me!" Raven cries, but Starfire is too much of a bliss to pay her any mind.

They get to the large crowd, and are able to scooch their way through until they can see just what has everyone so intrigued.

Lo and behold, a certain blue magician is wowing the crowd with some of his signature tricks.

"Thank you, thank you… You're all too kind," he says to his revering audience. "For my next trick, I'll need an assistant! Hmm… Let's see… Who can we pick on today…" he jokes, earning a little laugh from the crowd.

"Ooo! Ooo! I'll do it! I'll do it!" Starfire volunteers as she excitedly raises her hand up and jumps up and down.

"Starfire!" Raven scornfully says as she gets an opportunity to pull _her_ to the side now. "That's Mumbo Jumbo!"

"So? He does not look to be participating in any deviant behaviors?" Starfire contends.

"So? He's a villain!" Raven retorts. "Besides… I don't want to draw any attention to us."

Mumbo Jumbo, Jump City's resident magician gimmick ne'er-do-well, scans the crowd until he sees Starfire and Raven.

"Starfire? Raven?" he says with surprise in his gait. "What are you two doing at a Pretty Pretty Pegasus convention?"

"I should be asking _you_ the same thing, Mumbo," Raven accusingly states. "What are you planning this time? Are you going to raise an army of evil magic ponies?" she cynically, somewhat jokingly, adds.

Mumbo has the audacity to _smile_ at her remark. Worse yet, it's not an evil smile. It's a _happy_ smile.

"Oh dear Raven… See, some of us actually have to work for a living," he begins. "I'm not here to raise any armies or anything of the sort. I'm actually just here for a hefty paycheck. One that won't come with the agony and embarrassment of our usual encounters."

Raven narrows her eyes and folds her arms, making it clear she's not convinced. "Hmph. I have a hard time believing a criminal like you could get a gig at Pega-Con."

"So I fudged my background check. Big deal. Everybody does it nowadays," he casually tells her. "Why don't you come up here and be my assistant, and I can prove to you that my intentions are strictly professional."

"Shyeah. Fat chance," Raven denies with her usual monotone.

"Ooo! I will be the assistant!" Starfire clamors again.

Mumbo shrugs. "Sure." He then turns his attention back to the remaining audience. "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage my new lovely assistant: Starfire!"

He invites her to take his hand and come up on stage, and she giggles as she accepts his offer. Raven just crossly watches on as she makes her way up on stage to join the Titans' former rival.

He smiles as he escorts Starfire over to a Goldin's Box for the classic "sawing a woman in half" trick. The members of the crowd clap, but Raven just keeps pouting to herself.

"Now everyone pay close attention," Mumbo begins. "My assistant is going to step inside of this box, and then I am going to saw her in half with this!" he announces as he reveals a ridiculously large saw from out of nowhere.

Everyone is impressed, including Starfire, who gets wide-eyed with anticipation. Raven, however…

"Lame. So lame," she moans. Some of the other patrons overhear her, and begin to laugh at Mumbo's expense.

He notices, but cheekily perseveres as he helps Star into the box. "Now, feast your eyes and open your minds! Though I may cut this woman in half right down the middle, she will come out completely unscathed!"

"You can't be serious?" Raven starts again. "What is this, 1940? Are you gonna tell us about your favorite radio stories next?" she wisecracks, earning laughter from even more patrons.

Now Mumbo gets a little annoyed, and he shoots a glare at Raven. However, the show must go on as they say, and he tries to get the crowd back on his side. "Behold! Abracadabra! Mumbo Jumbo!" he calls out before taking the saw and cutting down the middle of the box encasing Starfire.

It hardly proves to be fruitful though. Thanks to Raven and her snide commentary, the crowd has turned on the magician.

Once he completes his trick and strolls Starfire's "upper half" to side, he anticipates what he expects to be a roaring applause. His reaction is… lukewarm. Some people are nice and clap anyway, but most people either are walking away or looking at their smartphones. Two braver gentlemen work up the nerve to try and ask Raven for her phone number, but she scares them off with a hissing scowl.

Mumbo frowns, and looks to Starfire, who is smiling like an idiot even though her body is crammed inside of the Goldin's Box half.

"Did we blow their noses?" she giddily asks.

"What? It's blow their minds?!- Ahh… forget it," he bitingly responds.

Raven takes the stage with a condescending little grin. "Well, was that the best you could do? Some lame parlor trick everyone else has done before?"

Mumbo's nostrils flare as he glowers at the Azarathian. She simply ignores him as she makes her way over to Starfire.

"I was the lovely assistant!" she happily reminds her.

"Yes you were," Raven simply says. "Come on, we should probably be getting home now," she suggests before opening the box half and freeing the other girl.

Starfire takes her hand to help herself up, and Raven just kind of lets it happen without even really noticing at first. She doesn't get excited though, she just goes back to having fun at her rival's expense.

"Well, Mumbo… I'll admit I needed this after today," she says with the same smile as before. "Let me know the next time you're at the Harold Plotter convention so we can catch your next act."

Mumbo's forehead vein is protruding from the rage, but it ebbs as he dons a wicked smile.

"The show isn't over yet, Raven… I have one last trick up my sleeve…"

He takes out a black hat much like the one on his head, and he begins motioning his fingers at it with his free hand.

"Mumbo _Jumbo!"_ he calls out before firing a blast of energy from his fingertips at the hat.

He then tosses it to the end of the stage, and Raven and Starfire watch on with wide eyes as they realize something bad is about to happen.

…

But, nothing does.

The three metahumans exchange puzzled looks, and Mumbo nervously rubs the back of his neck.

"Uhm… This never happens to me," he claims, and Raven just rolls her eyes and crosses her arms.

Then, belatedly, the hat begins shaking, and then flies up into mid-air. It just hovers at the same spot for a little while, and Raven positions herself into a fighting stance.

"Get ready, Starfire," she tells her fellow Teen Titan.

Starfire gets serious as she does the same, flaring up her fists with the energy that lies dormant inside of her.

Just then, a certain pathetic bunny costumed gentleman extemporaneously makes his way out of a port-o-potty and out onto the fairgrounds.

Mumbo glares at the man-rabbit, who looks back with his ridiculous smiling helmet.

"Alakazam!" Mumbo calls out as he points to the poor guy, and the floating black hat jets over to him. It takes a spot atop his helmet, and he begins convulsing as an aura of energy shrouds him.

He eventually stops though, and the aura slowly dissipates to reveal that the plastic bunny man has now become an actual living rabbit.

A very big, very angry looking rabbit.

Starfire gulps. "Raven… I do not think Mumbo wishes to blow our noses…"

"It's... minds…" Raven coyly responds, refusing to take her eyes off their soon to be opponent.

* * *

Back at Titan Tower…

Beast Boy and Cyborg have resumed their tabletop gaming, and Robin is browsing the web on his laptop.

"Uh! No way!" he suddenly cries.

"What's the matter?" Beast Boy asks him. When Cyborg turns to face Robin, Beast Boy moves one of his figures an inch to the left, for good measure.

"My favorite fiction author dropped this story halfway through… What a jerk!" he cusses.

Cyborg and Beast Boy snicker to one another.

"He reads… What a nerd!" Cyborg quips. Then he gets serious as they get back to their game. "Now, before we go again, I have to check the rulebook to see how many modifiers I need for this next roll."

Robin momentarily puts his depression aside to check the time. It's nearly an hour past noon, which is almost two hours since they've last heard from Raven and Starfire.

"Huh… I hope the girls are okay," he thinks aloud.

"Eh, I'm sure they're fine," Cyborg says.

"Yeah, Raven loves Princess Pony!" Beast Boy chimes in.

"I dunno… Does she really love anything? And I thought it was Pegasus Party?" Cyborg questions.

"Er, wait… It's My Little-"

"Well, Raven didn't sound too happy when we called her," Robin interrupts. "Maybe I should call them again and check in."

With that, he calls them up on his communicator…

…

But, Starfire and Raven are too busy firing ultraviolet lasers and opening interdimensional portals respectively because of the carny-turned-bunny villain.

…

"Huh," Robin thoughtfully utters. "No answer…"

He looks back to his friends, and they are too busy with their role-playing game to give him any attention.

He thinks over his next move for a moment as he looks back and forth between his communicator and the guys…

"I should probably go check on them," he decides. "But first I should get a refill. Gotta stay hydrated," he says as he shakes the empty cup on his desk.

He pulls himself out of his chair, and makes his way to the kitchen. However, he fails to account for the ottoman that is in his way, and he hits it with his shin.

 _SCREEEEK_

"Ow, dang it," he utters, but the slight discomfort from the bone-to-furniture contact is nothing compared to the ungodly sound it makes from scooting along the linoleum floor.

"Yeesh, dude!" Beast Boy yelps as he covers his ears.

"You best not be over there scraping up the tile!" Cyborg scolds.

Robin looks down to the ottoman, and shakes his head.

"Man, that is a loud ottoman."

* * *

Back at the fairgrounds of the amusement park, Mumbo Jumbo safely watches on from the stage as his newest minion battles Raven and Starfire.

"Yes, gooood…" he says as he evilly rubs his hands together. "Those meddling Titans will soon be out of the way forever! No longer will they get in the way of my magic acts for… hefty paychecks…"

He stops his monologue to look around, remembering that before the Titans came along, he was performing for a bunch of grown men and women wearing Pretty Pretty Pegasus T-Shirts.

He face palms. "Where did I go wrong? I should've never went to that community college…"

Meanwhile, Raven is conjuring up one of her spells to start bombarding the bunny with miscellaneous Pony-plastered memorabilia.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

As she finishes shouting those ritualistic words, the bunny looks to her to find a vendors' cart of wieners being flung in his face. The processed meat doesn't hurt so much, but the metal cart stings a bit.

He lets out a ferocious growl, and shoots Raven a look that could kill.

She dons a worried expression, and instinctively reaches out to summon more of her powers.

However, she then sees the bunny grabbing the same cart she threw at him, and her fight reflex makes way for her flight reflex.

The bunny tosses the cart with ease, aiming right for the gothic girl. She's able to fly away from its trajectory though, dodging what would've likely been a finishing blow.

However…

"Ahhhh!" Starfire cries out in pain.

Raven frantically looks around, and finds that the cart struck Starfire, sending her to the ground below.

"Starfire!" she cries.

The Tamaranian winces in pain and reflexively reaches her hand out. The impact proves to be too much for her, and she passes out.

Raven feels her heart sink as she realizes her friend has been hurt… But then, her feelings of remorse are subjugated by _rage._

She turns to Mumbo Jumbo, her eyes literally glowing red as they've come to do in times of great distress.

The villain gulps. "Uh oh…"

"Azarath Metrion ZINTHOS!" Raven shouts, extending a psychokinetic tentacle from her arm. She wraps it around Mumbo, constricting him, and then begins to flail him around back and forth, smashing him on the canvas over and over again.

"Okay! OKAY! Enough! I give up!" he starts crying.

The big bunny starts trudging over to Raven now, but she shoots it the same dirty look she gave its master, and it decides to back off as it defensively raises its hands and does a backstep.

...

Then, through a crowd of fleeing citizens, the remaining Teen Titans: Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy all make the scene. They tread their way onto the fairgrounds, and discover the wounded Starfire.

"Starfire!" Robin cries, and he hurries over to her supine body.

She groggily convalesces, raising herself up to meet his gaze. "Nuhhh… What happened?"

"It's okay, Star. I'm here," Robin tells her as she cradles her in his arms, softly smiling down on her.

She reciprocates the smile…

Then burps.

"BRUH! Oh… Excuse me," she says with a giggle as she blushes. "Too many wieners…"

Beast Boy and Cyborg then turn their attention to the violence ensuing between Raven and Mumbo. Despite his pleas for mercy, she continues bashing him against the stage's hardwood like she's whacking a mole.

They cringe, and the bunny villain does the same from a comfortable distance away.

Finally, Beast Boy decides that Mumbo has probably had enough, and decides to intervene for his, and for _Raven's_ sake.

"Raven… Raven!" he calls to her.

She finally snaps out of her demonic rage, her eyes returning to their usual shades of white and violet.

She looks all around her, seeing the way she's beaten Mumbo, seeing the way her friends look to her with worried eyes, and… seeing that Starfire is okay.

The initial feeling of remorse returns to her, and she unceremoniously drops Mumbo on the stage.

"Yow!" he cries one last time.

She then hurries over to Starfire, and Beast Boy and Cyborg cautiously follow.

"Starfire, are you okay? Say something," Raven says to her.

"I… I am fine. It is going to take more than a cart of breaded wieners to take me out," she weakly asserts with a smile.

The others all smile at this, but Raven can't. Beast Boy notices, and he rests a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You good?" he asks her.

She glances at him, then looks back to Starfire. "Yeah, I'm alright," she answers. "I'm really sorry Starfire. It's my fault you were hit."

Robin helps Starfire to her feet, smiling and blushing all the while. The girl seems as chipper as ever though, apparently unharmed by the stunning blow from before.

She looks to Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy, and then to Raven. There's still a resonating guilt in her eyes, but… It slowly goes away. It's replaced by this… nice feeling. Starfire likes the way she looks at her like this.

And then, Raven smiles too.

Beast Boy coughs into his hand. "Uhm… So… Nice shirts," he quips, pointing out the Pretty Pretty Pegasus shirts being worn by the girls.

Raven sourly frowns as she slouches and crosses her arms, but Starfire pulls her into a tight side-hug.

"We are Pegasus pals!" she happily declares.

Raven really… _really_ wants to be moody, and emo, and bitter, and depressed… But after spending so much time with Starfire, after seeing all of the things that make her such a great friend, and even the things that make her not so great…

After seeing her almost get hurt…

She can't help it. She has to let that little smile come back to her.

But, she can't let everyone think she's some sort of sap. And she definitely can't let them think she likes this stupid shirt. Because, she really doesn't.

"Uhm, I'm putting my cloak back on," she says to everyone.

"But, you don't have your-" Cyborg begins before she magically makes the cloak reappear from one of her portals, and she swiftly puts it on.

"Never mind."

With their reunion well done, they turn their attention back to today's villains. Bunny is just picking its nose and playing with the findings in its paw, and Mumbo is just a pathetic little mess of himself on the stage.

The Titans go over to him, and he uses what strength he has to wave his wand and fix himself back up.

He pitifully hunches over, and the Titans meet him with apathy.

"So, are we done here, Mumbo?" Raven asks him.

"Yes… We're done here," he glumly answers.

"Good. Now turn bunny guy back to normal," she continues.

He uses his wand to whisk up another little spell, transforming the grotesque bunny monster back into a lovable loser inside of a costume.

Once the transformation is complete, the dude takes off his helmet to reveal a vaguely familiar looking red haired gentleman, who then looks around with a dumbfounded expression.

"Woah…" he simply says before trailing off.

...

Mumbo then lets out a heavy, defeated sigh. "I suppose you'll be taking me off to jail now…"

The Titans all exchange thoughtful looks, but it's Starfire's initial shrug that starts a chain reaction of shrugging.

"We'll let you off this time, Mumbo," Robin says, "Even though I'm not quite sure what exactly happened here to begin with. Starfire, what exactly-?"

"Uhm, it's a long story," Raven interrupts.

It would appear that there is nothing left to say between the young heroes and villain, so the they simply decide to walk away and leave Mumbo to his sulking.

"That was awesome!" a young boy in a Batman shirt exclaims from not so far away.

"So cool! You made that all look so real!" a girl with a french braid and a blue bow in her hair adds.

They rush over the blue skinned magician, each holding out novelty items.

"Will you sign my sticker book?" the boy asks.

"Will you sing my bucket of chicken?" the girl follows.

Mumbo is stunned by the sudden attention, and becomes even more surprised to find that many other civilians are clapping and making their way over for autographs of their own.

He smiles, then looks to the Titans.

Despite their rivalry, the heroes can't help but smile back at the guy.

"Alright kids, form a single file line and I'll gladly sign your things. But first…" Mumbo says, and then he reaches behind the little girl's ear. "You have a quarter behind your ear!"

The fans laugh, and Raven rolls her eyes. Starfire playfully nudges her ribs with her elbow, and Raven rolls her eyes again, but for a much different reason.

The same reason she couldn't stay mad at her this morning, the same reason she couldn't get mad at her for bringing her here to Pega-Con, and the same reason she can't help but blush and smile again…

She isn't sure just what the reason is, but she does know one thing.

It's because of Starfire.

* * *

 **I have some bad news… I'm cancelling this fic.**

 **JUST KIDDING :D Sorry, I just couldn't resist haha. I have a warped sense of humor.**

 **Now for actual AN's.**

 **This actually isn't the first story where I've had girls who shoot stuff out of their fingers fighting a big pink bunny XD. Check out my Loud House/Silent Hill fic that totes makes me a hypocrite for always dogging on darkfics.**

 **If anyone laughs at the "for good measure" pun, I'll kiss you. I'll try and get a little less stupid with my jokes and focus on the actual plot going forward, but it's pretty hard not to be silly when life is typically miserable.**

 **Okay, so, I'm not sure how many chapters there will be for this whole story, but I can tell you that… I like to milk things for their worth XD. (Refer to slow burn tag, people). We're shifting into another gear with the next chapter though, so stay tuned for that. I promise to actually finish _this_ story, and that's coming from a guy who never makes promises.**

 **Thanks as always for reading, and please stay tuned for more, true believers.**

 **...**

 **PS. If there are any Star Vs. The Forces of Evil fans reading this, check out "Lucky Number Thirteen" by Heitomos. It's a very fluffy read that's worthwhile, and somewhat similar to what's going on here;)**


	6. Self Awareness

Titan Tower, daylight.

Sort of…

Well, for Raven at least, because although her body is in her bedroom, her mind and spirit are within the deepest recesses of… her mind and spirit.

It's the only place she has to be completely free from distractions, the only place where the other Titans' follies can't interfere with her pursuit of balance.

It's also the perfect place to talk to herself.

She finds that her mirror meditation has led her to the happier part of her mind, one where skies are clear and things are quiet. At first, it's just her.

But then, she's joined by another manifestation of herself, one in a pink cloak. "Oh my gosh! Hey! I've been _thinking_ about you! Heheheh!" the 'happy' manifestation of Raven jokes.

"Very funny," the real Raven simply responds.

"Uh oh, something's wrong…" a second manifestation timidly utters upon revealing itself. This version wears a grey cloak, and hangs her head lowly.

"Oh, lighten up. What makes you say that?" Happy Raven asks her.

"That's the only time she ever needs to talk about anything…" Timid Raven sadly answers.

A third manifestation, one in orange, reveals itself. "What is it this time? Daddy issues? Slade get more new powers? Let's just get this over with already!"

"Yeah… some of us were… _Yawwww_...napping…" a fourth manifestation, one in brown, comments with a yawn.

"I can see that this is going to go swimmingly," the real Raven sarcastically thinks aloud.

"Hahaha! That's funny!" Happy Raven says.

"I wasn't trying to be a downer with my last comment," Timid Raven says to real Raven, who brushes her off.

"Guys- girls- whatever… Listen," she begins, catching the attention of the other Ravens.

They give their master their undivided attention as she reveals why she has summoned them.

"I need to ask you guys about… Starfire."

"Starfire?" Rude Raven questionably repeats.

"Is this about what happened the other day at the convention? Sorry if I'm getting ahead of myself… I'll understand if you don't want to talk about it anymore," Timid Raven adds.

"Uhh, yeah. It's It's sort of about the convention. It's sort of about everything, really," true Raven explains.

"Oh, wasn't it so much fun spending quality time with Starfire? She really knows how to have a good time! She's so thoughtful and considerate. We're lucky to have a friend like her!" Happy Raven proclaims.

"That's just the thing. Even though I should have been miserable doing all those stupid Pegasus things with her… It actually wasn't so bad. I mean, the shirt thing was pretty terrible, and that Tara chick at the Q&A had an annoying voice..."

Rude Raven makes sure to scoff at this.

"...but I don't know. It actually was kind of nice being around her," true Raven finishes.

Upon finishing her statement, a fifth manifestation of Raven's subconscious reveals itself, this one clad in a bright amethyst cloak.

The others actually seem impressed to see her.

Well… except Careless Raven. For obvious reasons.

The newest manifestation smiles at true Raven. "It sounds like maybe you're getting sweet on Starfire," she states.

True Raven confusingly winces, but before she can reply, the other Ravens feel the need to chime in.

"Oh, of course you'd say that!" Rude Raven blurts out. "You said the same things about Aqua Lad and even _Robin_ a few times!"

"Those were different," Affectionate Raven somewhat nervously dodges. "I have a good feeling about this one."

"Uhm… Not to imply anything, just- just sort of thinking out loud here," Timid Raven shyly speaks up. "But are you sure? We just got out of a relationship with Beast Boy…"

"Maybe this is the start of something new, though!" Happy Raven intervenes. "It could be the chance to really find something new and exciting that we've always been dreaming of!"

Affectionate Raven proudly directs a smile at true Raven. "You hear that? Couldn't have said it better myself."

"Pshhh," Rude Raven scoffs again. "What a bunch of bologna. So what if we feel all warm and fuzzy about it now? It's just because of propinquity and a couple nice gestures… It doesn't mean anything in the long run!"

With a momentary cease of discourse, true Raven finally gets a chance to speak.

"But… What if it does?"

The others all look to her with obvious surprise on their faces, unsure of how to respond to such a simple, yet so powerful, question.

…

It doesn't matter soon enough though, as a rapping from her bedroom door breaks through the reverie, followed by the call of a familiar voice.

"Raven! Raven!" Starfire repeats as she knocks on the door.

It's enough to bring Raven back to the real world. Gone are the manifestations, all she sees now is the mirror in her hand and the dark room around her.

Despite how the knocking at her door has stopped, she methodically rises from her mattress to pussyfoot over to her door. She somewhat hesitantly opens it, and sees that Starfire has just decided to turn away.

The redhead realizes Raven has come out of her room and turns to face her.

"Oh, I am sorry to bother you," she coyly apologizes.

"It's okay... " Raven belatedly responds. "What did you need?" she somewhat skittishly adds.

Starfire nervously runs her neck as she thinks of how to phrase her thoughts.

"Uhm, do you mind if we speak privately? It is something I would not want the others to hear…"

"Oh," Raven says. Simple, but with so many conflicting emotions behind the one syllable word. Anticipation, uncertainty, confusion…

Maybe… Something else? Something more?...

"Come in," she tells her, nudging her door open further as an inviting gesture.

Starfire smiles a soft, almost somber smile before making her way inside.

* * *

Raven shuts the door behind her, feeling a lump swell in her throat. A few years ago, however long it's been now since the Titans formed, she wouldn't have dreamed of letting Starfire into her most private sanctuary.

" _Am I getting soft?"_

She focuses now on her guest, the girl she hasn't been able to stop thinking about all day. Starfire displays much more trepidation than usual, which, for Raven, begins to raise many questions that she imagines her self-proclaimed 'emoticlones' would have a hayday trying to answer.  
 _"Does this have anything to do with what we… I… whatever, talked about?"  
_ Starfire just looks at her with weak, pitiful puppy eyes though. And for a moment that drags out more than a Ru Paul pageant, nothing is said.  
 _"Okay?... This is weird…"_ Raven thinks. But she decides to swallow the lump that formed, and takes the initiative to speak up first.

"Uhm… What's up?" she almost nervously asks Starfire.

"Uhm, well…" the other girl tactfully begins as she nervously rubs her neck again, "Something is troubling me… Something I cannot discuss with the others…"

Again, she gets quiet as she eyes the floor.

" _Alright… So, girl troubles? Did she do something wrong? Why do I feel so weird about this?"_

There's silence, and then there's awkward silence. The former sounds great, literally. The latter?... Not so much. Not even for Raven.  
"Well don't just leave me hanging," she sarcastically follows up, her internal frustrations surfacing a bit.  
Starfire sighs a heavy sigh as she anxiously twiddles her hands, "I am sorry. Just… this is not easy for me."

On top of all the conflicting emotions, now there's worry. But, Raven puts years of practice with meditation to the test, containing all of her feelings as she dutifully listens to her friend.  
"Earlier today I was at the supermarket, doing the grocery shopping for the week," Starfire starts, still eyeing the ground.

"Didn't you buy groceries just this past Sunday?" Raven interrupts.  
"Beast Boy and Cyborg burnt breakfast, and I have been craving the peppermint peanut butter crunch cookies lately," she admits in a sorrowful tone that no person or extraterrestrial should ever have when discussing such delicacies.

"As I was doing the shopping, I became aware that certain items were marked as 'half-off,'" she proceeds, much to Raven's curiosity.

" _This… is not going where I thought it would…"_ Raven thinks. She keeps it to herself though.

"Perplexed by the meaning of this phenomenon, I referred to the nearby gentlemen for inquiry. They seemed nice enough; they were smiling at me from afar."

Raven rolls her eyes at this. _"Ignorance is bliss, they say…"_

Starfire visibly saddens as she slouches and frowns. Raven disregards her prior cynicism as those feelings of concern take priority.

"Star?" she utters.

The other girl dejectedly sighs again, "You will laugh when I tell you…"

If it were anyone else: Robin, Cyborg, even Beast Boy, Raven would tell them to hurry up and get to the point. But Starfire? She's so… good. Compared to everyone else she's ever met, Starfire is truly one in a million.

Maybe it's why she's been feeling so different about her lately. Maybe it's why she decides to make her way closer to have a seat on the bed by her.

"Starfire… Whatever it is, you can tell me. I won't laugh. And not just because I never laugh at anything," Raven sincerely tells her.

Ever so pitifully, Starfire looks to her. "But- I saw you laughing at the Pretty Pretty Pegasus cartoon?"

Raven frowns. "I said I won't laugh," she reiterates.

Starfire softly smiles. "Okay… Well… I approached the two gentlemen, and very politely I asked them, 'Excuse me, but could you explain to me why the items are marked half-off? I do not see anything missing from them?'"

It takes a moment for Raven to fully comprehend what she's been told, but once it registers, she can't help but pinch the bridge of her nose and let out a dispirited "Oh, Starfire…"

Starfire keeps going though. "The gentlemen proceeded to make much mockery of my misunderstanding! It was so embarrassing…"

Raven raises a brow. "Okay… What kind of things did they say?"

Starfire deflates again. "They… They said that I was 'so dumb.' They said that I was a 'bimbo,' and that I should return to the kitchen where I belong… I do not understand why would direct me to the kitchen, though…"

Raven's curiously raised brow becomes an infuriated furrow. "God… That is such a load of-"

She stops herself mid-sentence, taking a deep breath to calm herself a bit before addressing the situation.

"Listen to me, Starfire. Forget what those stupid jerks said. First of all, you are a strong, beautiful woman; and don't ever let any man tell you any different. Secondly, it wasn't your fault that you didn't understand what they meant, or what the stupid half-off deal meant."

"What does it mean?" Starfire asks.

"I'll tell you later. I'm on a roll," Raven asserts, being sure to maintain strong eye contact with her as she continues. "This world, this Earth… It's a crazy place. I know what it's like to try and understand it. And I know what it's like to fail…"

Starfire devotes her listening to the Azarathian as she displays a seldom seen side of herself.

"You just- you have to learn to accept who you are. And, you have to just try and make your own little niche in it…" she finishes as she turns her attention to the floor.

"You speak from experience?" Starfire asks.

Raven looks back into her green eyes, feeling a powerful connection and science of understanding she's never felt with her before.

"I do."

Starfire belatedly breaks the eye contact, and again, they fall into silence.

…

"When I was at the bar the other night, waiting for my inebriated sister to settle down… I felt this… loneliness," she begins. "It is a loneliness I experience when I am reminded of how I am not of this Earth. How I am so different from everyone else."

Raven slightly turns her head to look at her from the corner of her eye, returning the favor of diligently listening just as Starfire did for her.

"I… know what you mean," she confesses. "Even after so much time here, I still feel alone."

Starfire fixes her posture as she has a thought. "But you said you spoke from experience? About finding a niche?"

Raven faintly smiles. "I did. I found you guys," she answers.

And for a moment, the two girls just gaze at one another, sharing this feeling of acceptance… of belonging.

Starfire breaks the contact though as her cheeks become somewhat red.

"You said I was beautiful… Did you mean that?"

Raven's eyes widen at the sudden question. Obviously she meant it, and obviously she meant it as a strictly platonic statement of what she believes to be fact.

But now? Now it seems like a totally different word. One that could mean something more…

"I did," she answers a second time, feeling her own cheeks redden.

…

More silence. And not the awkward kind either. Heck, not even the other kind that Raven's come to appreciate.

No… This is a… good silence. A nice moment to just let words linger, and to let feelings flow. It's a silence she's felt before, but never with Starfire.

She could get used to it, though.

However, all good things must come to an end, and she decides not to let it overstay its welcome and kill the mood.

"So… Did this help any?" she asks Starfire.

She smiles once more. "It did. Thank you, Raven…"

"...Now, are you hungry? I would hate for all of my time spent at the store to be for naught," she jokes with a playful little elbow nudge to Raven's arm.

She smiles back. "Uhm... sure."

With that, the two girls stand up from the bed, and make their way to the door. However, Raven stops as she gets a chance glance of her meditation mirror.

"Hey, you go on ahead," she tells Starfire. "I'll catch up in a little bit."

Starfire simply smiles with understanding before leaving Raven to herself.

Once she's sure the other girl is gone, she creeps over to her door to quietly shut it, and then takes to the bed to pick back up on her meditation.

Once she's focused enough to enter the deep recesses of her mind and spirit as she did before, the manifestations of her personality all gather just as they did before.

And of course, it's Happy Raven to start things off.

"EEEEEEEE!" she giddily squeals, "That was so cute!"

And while the others take turns adding their two-cents to the matter, true Raven allows herself to get lost in a warm feeling that comes with the smile Starfire has put on her face.

* * *

 **I listened to so much Dixie Chicks while writing this. Sorry not sorry.**

 **As always, thanks for reading my lovelies.**

 **For those of you who missed out on 2003, Raven's manifestations are known as the "Emoticlones." I ate that scene up like buttered waffles.**

 **Other than that, what else is there to say about the chapter? I love writing dialogue between two chicks subconsciously pining for each other more than a young man in rural USA really should.**

 **In a bit of actual news, further updates will be less consistent than I'd hoped (Oh no he said the same thing about Mind Over Matter). I'm going to be starting a new job soon, and I'm not sure how it will affect my writing schedule just yet. It should be fine, considering I usually write at four in the morning during caffeine fueled spurts of brief euphoria; but it still gives me less time to work on what** _ **really**_ **matters.**

 **Either way… I'm hungry and motivated for the first time in a long time, so this will get done. And if you liked the fluffy stuff that went on here, you'll love the next chapter, I can promise you that;)**

 **Until next time, true believers.**

 _ **Gets hit by random blunt object, dies.**_


	7. A Walk In The Park

Jump City, daylight.

Today is an on-the-clock day for the resident teenage superheroes. After getting a report on their Titan Tower computer about someone selling pirated copies of Cringey Yuri 2: Electric Pillowdude, they decided to take it upon themselves to investigate the criminal activity around the city.

In all actuality though, it was mostly just Starfire and Raven agreeing to tag along so that the guys would stop being so annoying about how it's the best sequel since Lily is Strange.

Upon arriving in the centralized zone of the city, it was agreed upon that more ground could be covered if everyone split up to investigate. Of course, Beast Boy and Cyborg were first to express how their love of all things cringeworthy media and investigations in general would make them the perfect tandem, so they went off together. Robin was just about to ask Starfire if she'd like to accompany him, but she got distracted upon seeing a stray kitten and chased after it. Raven took it upon herself to go after her first, and, well… Robin was left to do his sleuthing alone.

It all worked out well for Raven though. Not only did she have zero interest in hearing anymore talk about movies based off stupid fiction stories, but she decided very quickly that she'd be doing no investigating.

And if she just so happened to end up tagging along with Starfire, no harm done. She'd rather hear about her overjoyed love of kittens and sunny days than the ridiculous he-bro topics the guys harp on about.

Not to mention there are certain things she'd like to think about, and certain feelings she'd like to work through, all involving the Tameranian princess.

…

A couple hours have passed since everyone divided, and the girls find themselves coming to the city park to try and find the owner of a certain little kitten Starfire caught up with.

"It would have a collar," Raven tells the other girl matter-of-factly.

"That would be most convenient, but I cannot simply give up on the little guy," Starfire says with a smile regarding the feline cradled in her arms. "A kitten this cute _has_ to have an owner, and I will be the one to find them!"

Starfire starts to beat Raven's pace, and the Azarathian allows herself to fall behind a bit to reflect on things.

"Well, this beats playing find the pirate booty with those bozos," she thinks aloud.

She looks around at the unfamiliar faces wandering through the park. There are boyfriends and girlfriends, mothers and daughters; really just all around happy looking people.

Maybe it's true what they say about laughter being contagious, at least to an extent. Somewhere between the lovely summer weather, and the smiling faces all around her- particularly that of one fellow female Titan… she finds herself smiling for no real reason at all.

She then lets her eyes follow Starfire, who innocently and politely asks the park's patrons if they know who that complacent little cat belongs to.

"Excuse me, miss," she says to a woman wearing a FIRST robotics T-Shirt, "Would you happen to know whom this kitty belongs to?"

"Aww!" the stranger gushes. "No, I'm sorry. He is a cutie though!" she answers before going on her way.

"Oh… Well thank you very much, anyway!" Starfire replies with a friendly wave goodbye.

Raven actually laughs the tiniest little nasal-laugh from watching this. _"She's really something…"_

" _But what? I mean… What's changed? I never used to think this way before. Before it was annoying just how happy and eager she is all the time."_

" _She means so well, though. She's never done me or any of the guys any wrong. She's always first to try and help, like with me these last few days..."_

" _I guess I'm just changing. I mean, I never liked Beast Boy either, and things really changed between us… Is it fair to compare what I'm feeling for her to what I had with him?"_

" _Could my emoticlones be right? Could I be… infatuated with her?"_

Despite being thoroughly distracted by her doubt filled monologue, she's able to make out what appears to be the sound of someone crying in the distance. She perks up, focusing her efforts on listening for the source of the bawling.

It leads her over to a secluded shady spot hidden in an offbeat corner, where she finds a small boy curled up in a fetal position and sniffling. She does a little double take as she considers her next move, then cautiously approaches the boy.

"Uhm… Hey, kid… Are you alright? Are your parents around?" she asks.

The boy looks up to her with puffy red eyes, and ungracefully wipes some snot off his face with his forearm. Raven tries not to make it obvious that she wants to cringe.

"I- I- I lost my- I- I-" the boy stammers over and over.

"Woah, easy there, John Moschitta," Raven quips, "Relax. I can help you. I'm with the Teen Titans," she says.

The boy sniffles some more, but does his best to regain a little composure. "I lost my cat. He's just a little baby kitty, and his name is Sill-Sill," the boy explains.

Raven raises a brow. "That's… kind of a strange name for a cat," she utters.

"Will you help me find him?" the little boy says with tremendous desperation, actually reaching out to take Raven's hand.

Although somewhat stunned by just how forward the child is being, and how he probably hasn't washed his hands recently, she _does_ know where to find a kitten, and she _is_ a Teen Titan. Teen Titans help people, first and foremost.

Despite what TV leads people to believe...

"O- Okay kid… I'll help you find your cat. Just… please don't turn out to be some secret supervillain or something lame like that," she thinks aloud.

"Whuh?" the boy cluelessly blurts out.

"Nothing. Come on," Raven tells him as she escorts him through the park. She pulls up her communicator, and dials for Starfire. "Starfire… Come in, Starfire."

She almost immediately responds.

*Raven!* she gladly exclaims from the other end. *I was just about to call you! I believe I have found the pet parent of the tiny furry kitty!*

This puzzles her. "Uhm, Starfire… I was calling to tell you that _I_ found the person the cat belongs to. Where are you?"

There's nothing but incoherent mumbling from the other end for a moment, but Starfire answers soon enough. *I am at the pavilion closest to the bridge,* she says with an uncharacteristically curt tone before hanging up.

"What the-?" Raven wonders before putting her communicator away. "Come on, kid," she orders the child as she gruffly presses forward.

* * *

Raven reaches Starfire's location, and finds her standing by two skeevy dudes. They're both laughing hysterically, and Starfire is pitifully frowning to herself while trying to coax the sad little kitten in her arms.

The boy holding Raven's hand brightens up upon seeing the cat, and releases his grip to run towards the Tameranian.

"Sill-Sill!"

Perplexed by the whole ordeal, Raven simply watches on before carefully pacing to Starfire.

"Star, what's going on here?" she asks.

Starfire hands the kitten off to its pet parent with a soft little smile, and the boy gladly takes it and wraps it in a big hug.

"Sill-Sill!" he happily cries again. "Thank you ma'am!" he tells Starfire.

"You are quite welcome," she says with her same smile, but there's an obvious sadness in her tone that Raven easily picks up on.

The little boy takes off with his cat, leaving the two young women to deal with their other dilemma.

"Thank you too, Raven. You're welcome little boy," Raven quips before turning her attention back to Starfire. "Hey, what's the matter?" she asks her.

She sighs. "The two gentlemen laughing at my expense; they are the same gentlemen from the supermarket the other day…"

Raven looks to the stupid, punchable faces of the skeevy dudes, feeling like she could turn red and let steam seethe out of her ears like in the cartoons.

"Oh, they are, are they?" she says before starting to make her way over to them.

Starfire takes her wrist and stops her though, "Raven… No…"

"What? No! Those two losers need someone to teach them a lesson," she barks.

"You are absolutely right," Starfire responds, to the surprise of her friend. The sorrowful look on her face then turns into one of anger. "And I shall be the one to do it."

She lets go of Raven, then trudges her way over the laughing idiots. Raven just looks on, flabbergasted.

The two guys stop laughing long enough to measure up Starfire. "Look it, bro. Genius came back for more!" he teases.

"Yeah, sorry to mess with you babe. That wasn't really our cat, but what can I say? It's always fun talking to you," the other says to her as he cups his grody finger under her chin.

She _instantly_ swats it away.

"Do not call me _babe._ And do not think that I am simply a pretty face," she sternly tells them.

Somewhat taken back, the two dudes look to one another before sneering. "Ooo! She's feisty!"

Starfire grabs the closest jerk by his index finger, clamming him up real quick.

"You listen to me, and you listen to me good," she begins. "I am not dumb, I am not a bimbo. I am a _strong, beautiful_ woman. And no one will tell me any different. If you wish to treat me or any other women as horribly as you do in the future, I will make it my top priority to pulverize you. Am I understood?"

Skeevy guy simply nods, and the other's ghostly white face is a sufficient enough response.

"Excellent," Starfire says with a smile before releasing him. "I would also kindly ask that you stop selling those pirate movies and turn yourselves in to the local authorities."

The dude with the aching finger turns to the dude with the ghostly white face, and slaps his chest to bring him back to.

"Let's get out of here!" he clamors.

And with that, they hurry off as fast as they can, leaving behind a large box of illegally downloaded films.

Raven makes her way over to a very proud Starfire, and looks to see that she has indeed solved the case of the bootlegged yuri movies. Of course, she could care less about that.

"Starfire… That was awesome!" she blurts out.

"Was it, really?" she giddily asks.

"Definitely!" Raven says with a very rare glimmer of excitement. "You really put those guys in their place."

"Well, I certainly feel better now," Starfire says, her cheeks reddening a little as she looks away from Raven's eyes.

Raven feels her cheeks flushing a bit as well, but she really _doesn't_ want to look away. So… she doesn't.

Even so, Starfire looks to the box of DVD's the skeevy guys left behind, and takes one of the cases out. "Interesting… These are not the movies about the pirates?" she thoughtfully says.

"No, Starfire. Those are-" she begins, but she stops herself. It really doesn't matter. What does matter is that, in some way, she was able to help Starfire feel better about herself just as she was able to for her. And in doing so, she gave her the gift of this warm feeling that she feels right now.

"Actually, never mind," she simply says with a smile.

Starfire smiles back before allowing herself to become riddled with doubt once more.

"Should we call the others and tell them about these videos? That was the purpose of the mission, was it not?"

Raven thinks it over for a moment, but keeps smiling as she comes to a decision. "Eh, don't worry about it. Actually… Maybe… Why don't we take a walk?" she suggests.

"A walk?" Starfire simply responds.

Raven's smile ebbs, and she feels this weird anxiety inside her chest. Like, rejection almost.

"If you don't want to-"

"No," Starfire interrupts, "A walk sounds lovely," she answers with another warm smile.

"Great," Raven simply says, the weird feeling of anxiety being replaced by an even weirder feeling of excitement.

With that, they leave the pavilion and the box of cringey yuri behind, making their way off to the walking trail of the park. They don't even get to see the cat they returned to the little boy attacking the skeevy dudes for trying to pickpocket its pet parent, not that they would care.

For Starfire, she's happy knowing that she's done two good deeds today in helping return the kitten to the boy, as well as stopping the illegal barter of pirate movies that aren't actually pirate movies. She's happy knowing that the skeevy dudes won't be perpetuating their misogynistic ways any longer, and she's happiest of all to know how well Raven seems to be enjoying herself lately.

And Raven? Well… She's just happy to be here with Starfire.

* * *

 **Funny story, my cat's name is Cillian, but we pronounce it "Sillian." Someone in my family got the idea to name him after Cillian Murphy, but we always thought it was pronounced like that, and the poor little bastard's been called this and "Sill-Sill" ever since. (I wanted to name him Balls because I'm an idiot who's easily amused, but I digress).**

 **Anyway… this chapter is mostly here to set up the next chapter, which will get into good stuff that I promised would happen in this chapter. I'm terrible with hindsight, people.**

 **Anywho, please stay tuned for more, and thanks as always for reading:)**


	8. Something More

She kind of missed dating Beast Boy.

Not enough to be considered pining or anything, or even still having romantic feelings for him, but she still missed it a little. It was nice knowing someone was there to hold hands with, or tell her she's beautiful, or just know that they'd be thinking about her.

It's easier to forget about when she's battling a supervillain or reading one of her spell books, but when she's at a park where couples tend to gather for picnics and snow cones, it makes her feel somewhat amiss.

"Raven," Starfire says, bringing her back to reality.

She responds with just an acknowledging look.

"Did you hear me?" Starfire asks.

"Uhm, no… Sorry. I kind of zoned out."

Starfire actually giggles. "You must pay more attention," she playfully teases.

Raven amusedly huffs. "What did you say?"

Starfire points to the bridge suspended over a small pond. "I would like to take a momentary recess in the shade," she repeats.

"Oh… Alright," Raven complies, and she follows her to the bridge.

They make way to the railing, where Starfire leans against it and looks to the water. After a moment to get comfortable, Raven places her hands on it, not quite leaning, but just making her own comfortable little niche here.

She too looks into the water, and sun shines on it in just the perfect way, really accentuating how vibrant and full of life it is. There are some coy swimming inside, and even they seem to somehow be happy with just how nice things are with their graceful ebb and flow.

"This has been such a lovely walk. I love this kind of weather," Starfire comments, finally ungluing her eyes from the water to look at her companion.

Raven looks to her too, but almost embarrassingly turns away. For some reason, the way she smiles at her makes her feel so anxious, like if she reciprocates the gesture, she'll wrap her into a great big hug that will pop her head off or something saccharine like that.

That… wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, but _still…_

"It's… been a good day," Raven agrees.

And for a moment, they're both quiet. Starfire admires the world around her, almost radiating with a warm glow because she's so bright.

Which has to explain why Raven can't help but only admire _her._

" _God, this is so weird,"_ she thinks to herself. There was a time when she would literally use thoughts of Starfire _not_ being happy to balance her emotions. The love of 'the kitties' was annoying, her constant misunderstanding of earthly behavior was migraine inducing, and her laugh was loud, obnoxious, and infuriating.

But here lately, here now… her compassion for life is favorable. Her innocent ignorance is somehow charming. And her laugh is actually… cute.

She was certainly right before. Starfire is a strong, beautiful woman. She may be caring, but she is still a fighter. She reminded her of this earlier with the skeevy guys. She's never afraid to do battle with even the worst of villains, especially as a service to her friends, and she would actually do anything for them. Not the expression, no. She would literally put her life on the line for the people she loves.

And yet, how does she feel? When she thinks of Raven, what does she say to herself? Has she noticed how things are changing too? Or is it all somehow just her imagination?

"Starfire…" Raven begins, cutting through the now palpable silence.

"Hmm?" Starfire simply responds.

"What do you think of me?" Raven asks her.

"What do I think of you?" she questions.

"I mean… when you think of me, what do you think about?"

Starfire thinks it over for a moment, then puts her smile back on.

"Well, I think you are very smart. You always know just what to say. I also admire your collected nature. I know that my _excitement_ can sometimes be frustrating for others, but you are always so… what is the word?…"

Raven laughs the faintest little laugh. "I know what you're saying," she answers. "I'm sorry if I've made you feel bad before. About being so happy all the time," she belatedly adds. "There's nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong at all."

"Thank you," Starfire warmly tells her.

They look out to the water again, but Raven shamefully feels the need for more. There just wasn't quite enough there to make any of these feelings and thoughts any more sensible.

"What else?... What else do you think about me, I mean," she says with trepidation.

Starfire thinks again before speaking. "Well… You have been a very good friend to me all these years. You have always been there for me when I've needed you, even when it was inconvenient. You are also quite funny with some of your wisecracks about Beast Boy," she lists off.

A smile encroaches on Raven's face now. "Really?"

"Oh yes," Starfire assures her as if it isn't even a question, "You have such a way with words. You make me feel… good about myself. The other day when I needed a friend, you were most helpful. I truly appreciate it."

Now Raven can't stop smiling, and she can't stop gazing at her. The anxious feeling that's been nagging inside of her begins to feel more comfortable, more welcome with every passing second. She's getting eager to do something about it.

Starfire takes great care in making sure she's covered everything, wearing a thoughtful expression as she does so. But again, her smile comes back, and she comes up with something she feels is a sufficient conclusion to her description of all things Raven.

"Hmm… Yes. I would also gladly tell you that you are a strong, beautiful woman. The strongest and most beautiful I have ever known."

And just like that, Raven feels like time around them has frozen, and that the only thing that matters is Starfire. Her heart is racing, her cheeks are flushed…

"Do you really mean that?" she quietly asks.

"I do," Starfire surely, almost _powerfully_ answers.

Their eyes lock, and the temptation to do something about that warm, welcome feeling reaches fever peach. With just the smallest hesitation, Raven takes her hand and cups Starfire's chin with her finger. Then, she boldly stares into those magical green eyes of hers one last time before closing her own…

She pulls her into a kiss.

In the moment that their lips touch, she feels absolute bliss. There's no need to balance her emotions, not when the only one that takes precedence is happiness. Starfire's lips are so soft, so tender. They even manage to taste good. Her soft skin touching her little finger is smooth, and all of the pheromones lingering around her are intoxicating. She could almost tremble at the touch, the smell, the taste… the _rush…_

At last, she breaks the kiss, desperate to look into the eyes of her new inamorata.

What she comes to find as she opens her eyes is the look of someone absolutely stunned.

It sends a sinking feeling to her chest, like what little bit of hope she had just begun to cherish has been crushed.

But she says nothing. She just waits for Starfire to react.

"What was that?" she asks, evidently confused.

Raven almost fumbles her words as she lets out, "Uhm… It was a kiss."

"I know that," Starfire politely responds, "I just do not understand why you would kiss me. I was under the impression that a kiss is to be shared among those who share great affection, particularly that of a man and a woman."

There have been times in Raven's life where she's experienced rejection, but nothing quite like this. Starfire isn't a demigod from another dimension that she despises. She isn't the pretty face of a passer-by either. She is something somewhere in between, in a way.

She's her best friend, the individual she trusts the most, the one she thinks the highest of. When things get tough, she's the first person she depends on to have her back, even when it's life or death. Maybe there was a time that Beast Boy was that someone, and sure, her other fellow Titans are family… But Starfire…

She wasn't supposed to hurt her.

Of course she didn't mean to; how could she when she can't even fathom what the kiss was supposed to mean? It's not her fault.

The estranged look in her eyes that she gives her now, it pains her. It's not at all what she'd want to see, like another bright, shining smile, or even a kiss in return.

But, it's not anger either. It's not disgust. It's nothing that indicates she's just absolutely ruined everything between them. In fact, there's room for a smooth recovery.

"Raven?" Starfire utters, still looking to her with those piteous green eyes.

"Well… That's the thing," Raven begins. "That… that was a _friend_ kiss…"

"A friend kiss?" Starfire curiously questions.

"Yeah, a friend kiss," Raven continues, swallowing her pain hard. "Sometimes, friends will kiss each other just… just to show they care. Like, how I did just now."

"I'm still not quite sure I understand. I have never heard of this 'friend kiss,'" Starfire admits.

"Well, that's because they don't happen a lot," Raven furthers as she nervously, almost shamefully rubs the back of her neck. "They're supposed to be special that way."

"I see," Starfire replies. "So I should return one to you, yes?" she says, almost initiating the gesture.

Raven defensively motions her to stay though. "No, it's okay," she answers. One awkward kiss of unrequited love was enough.

"Alright," Starfire sorrowfully responds. "But why now? You have never mentioned the friend kiss before, and I am not sure what I have done to deserve it."

It's almost magic how she does it. Just when Raven wants to give up and shut down, Starfire finds a reason to make her come out of her shady old shell, to share the best of herself.

"You've done plenty to deserve it, trust me," she starts with a slowly steadying smile. "These past few days, you've just been… amazing company. I'm really happy that you're my friend."

Starfire finally seems to come to some sort of understanding as she smiles back. "Well, I am very happy that you are my friend, as well Raven."

There's some bittersweet satisfaction in knowing things can move forward. Evidently, she doesn't feel the same attraction to Raven that she does her. If she did, she wouldn't have had to lie.

But, all things considered, it can all be left behind on this bridge. She can live the rest of her days knowing that, at least she tried.

"We should let the others know about the pirate movies now. Unless you would like to continue walking?" Starfire suggests.

"Yeah, she should probably head back now," Raven answers with a soft smile to tell Starfire, and maybe herself, that things are just fine.

With that, they head back the way they came, ready to reconvene with the others. As she pulls up her communicator to page them though, she realizes something.

As great as Starfire is, she also has a big mouth.

"Uhm, Starfire?" Raven speaks up.

"Yes?"

"Please don't tell the others I kissed you."

"Why not?" the Tameranian asks.

"Well… That's part of what makes the kiss so special. It can just stay between us, and we don't have to tell anyone else about it."

"I understand," she gladly says back, and Raven gives her one last little smile before pressing forward.

She puts the hood of her cloak over her head, doing her best to stay ahead of the other girl just enough that she can hide all of the conflicting emotions. It's just something she'll have to work through, and she knows that.

It can't stop her from feeling the pain though.

…

With every step forward though, Starfire can't help but become perplexed. Maybe she still doesn't fully understand after all.

" _Hmm… Friend Kiss…"_

* * *

 _ **What huuuuurts the most…**_ **Relax, baby. I'm here for you…**

 **Okay, so for real, I'm super excited to get to the second act of this story. All my other stories waited until the last couple chapters for face sucking, and I wasn't even going to do it with Wanderers until I got bullied by two smelly jerks about it.**

 **I digress. I told y'all I was shaking things up this time, and I meant it! Sure there's going to be plenty of "female character doubts herself" still to come, but it'll be great, or my name isn't James! (Wait…)**

 **Anyway, this was a fun chapter for me, and I hope it was for you guys and girls too. Happy Pride month, thanks for reading, and hopefully you'll stick around for more of my fluffy pillow smothering.**


	9. Pizza Shop AU

**Sorry it's taken me a bit to update. Writing schedule's been tight with real life stuff going on.**

* * *

Jump City, Daylight.

Some things never change, even for the most extraordinary of people. This certainly includes the Teen Titans, because, even through the ever morphing landscape that is their life together, there is one thing that remains a constant.

Pizza.

Brother Blood has always been one of the stronger Titan foes, and he definitely gave the Titans a formidable challenge today when he and some of his newly brainwashed minions attempted to steal valuable technology from a local armory. However, momentum shifted in the heroes' favor after one of the villains' Aerosol guns extemporaneously jammed, and Robin opportunistically charged at him with a nearby pry bar. A few ultraviolet lasers, psychokinetic bolts, and a transformation into a Japanese Spitz later, and the criminal mastermind was handed over to the proper authorities soon enough.

How else would they celebrate than by heading to the nearest pizzeria and stuffing their faces?

Of course, while some things never change, some things do. For starters, while the last visit to a pizza place ended with Raven storming out over Beast Boy's refusal to pay for pizza, today he actually volunteered to buy today's pie with some money he earned selling some of his (and Cyborg's) old CDs on the internet.

He even offers to let her have the first slice.

"Here, Momma," he says to her with a smile.

She smiles back, but then directs it to someone else at the table. "No thanks. How about you take the first slice, Starfire?"

"Uh, yeah! I was just about to say that!" Robin abruptly chimes in with an almost desperate look on his face.

Starfire simply shrugs at the sudden attention from her peers, "Alright," and then proceeds to take a very generous first 'slice' of the pizza for herself.

While Cyborg and Beast Boy watch her with impressed looks of their faces, Raven and Robin wistfully gaze upon her.

She could care less though, as made evident by a large belch after scoffing down her lunch.

 _BUUUUUUURP!_ "Hee hee… Excuse me," she says with a little blush.

Everyone looks to the empty box on the table, realizing that the chick just ate the whole flippin' pizza.

"Uhhh… Starfire…" Beast Boy begins. "That was kind of for all of us."

"Oh, excuse me!" she proclaims. "I am sorry. I guess all that defeating of the bad guys has just made me very famished!"

"S'all good, fam. We can just go buy another," Cyborg suggests.

"I can't. That was my _Night Begins to Shine_ money," Beast Boy explains.

"What?! You done sold my favorite CD?!" Cyborg blurts out.

"Heh heh… Did I say that out loud?" Beast Boy nervously utters.

Just then, Robin's communicator begins to buzz, and he glues his eyes to it almost as if his very existence depends on it.

"Uhm, are you alright, Robin? Is that a crime alert?" Raven asks.

"Huh? Oh, no. It's a super long text wall from this dude who spams me on my stories site… I'm gonna go outside for a minute where I can think of a pity response in peace," he tells the others before excusing himself.

The others just shrug it off.

"Well, I will go and purchase another pizza for us. Should we get bacon on it since Robin is no longer present?" she asks.

"Oh, definitely," Cyborg answers.

"Absolutely," Raven agrees.

"I'm a vegetarian. But yeah, whatevs," Beast Boy finishes.

WIth that, Starfire giddily excuses herself from the table now, making her way to the service area to place another order.

Raven can't help but somewhat crestfallenly watch her as she leaves. It's been a few days since their so-called _'friend kiss,'_ and she's done her best to try and move past it, but it hasn't been easy. Her thoughts, even her dreams, have been filled with Starfire. She's just such a great girl. The way she's always laughing and smiling, the way she's always excessively and unnecessarily saying 'the', the fact that she's actually very attractive...

She's in too much of a daze staring at Starfire to notice Beast Boy and Cyborg whispering to themselves about something.

"Dude, please don't!" Beast Boy pleas.

"Bro, you need to do this," Cyborg firmly states. "If you two don't spend some alone time together, you'll never get passed the whole awkward post break-up stage."

Beast Boy swallows hard. "You're right."

"Darn right, I'm right. Also, I'm selling your Live 2 Lynn CD to get back at you," Cyborg says before standing up and pulling himself out of his seat, making sure to take his soft drink with him.

"What?!" Beats Boy cries, but Cyborg straight ignores him.

He fakes a stretch. "Awwww! Man, the circuits in my legs are all laggy. I think I'll go see if Star needs help placing our order," he says as he makes his exit and heads that way.

Which… leaves the former boyfriend and girlfriend to one another. Raven breaks from her pining to see Beast Boy nervously smiling at her, and she does a little double take as she begins to feel a little anxious.

"Uhm, where did Cyborg go?" she asks.

"He uh… He just wanted to see if Starfire needed any help. You know she can be sometimes, heh heh," BB nervously responds.

Raven raises a brow, then somewhat sullenly slouches over. "Yeah… Yeah I do…"

* * *

Cyborg heads to the service station, where there is a very long line of people waiting to place orders. He frowns at this, especially since he doesn't see Starfire standing in the line. After getting a refill for his drink, he looks around for her, and finds her sitting over at a nearby table. She's looking out the glass wall like she's got a lot on her mind, which piques her teammate's interest.

He paces over to her, and takes a seat across from her. "Hey, Star. Everything alright?" he asks.

She meets him with a bit of a surprised expression, but eases up as she preens a strand of hair behind her ear. "What? Yes. Everything is well. Why do you ask?"

"Well, you were looking out the glass like you got a lot on your mind, which piqued my interest," Cyborg cleverly details.

Starfire considers her next words for a moment as she eyes a very interesting spot on the floor from the corner of her eye, but sighs as she gives up trying to think of something other than what's really troubling her.

"Cyborg… May I speak to you about something that I would like to remain private?" she requests.

"Uhm, alright," Cyborg responds. "This wouldn't happen to be about Robin, would it?" he says with a little smile.

"No, I am not interested in his so called 'cringey fics,'" Starfire stoically answers.

"Oh," Cyborg simply utters. "Okay then. What's on your mind, Star Firefly?"

"Well, as I have stated, it is a very delicate matter, and I sincerely wish that you will keep it between the two of us. It is actually regarding something that I have promised not to speak of with anyone else, but I have so many questions that I cannot ask her about," Starfire explains.

"Hey, I'm cool. Scout's honor," Cyborg insists with a smile and the matching gesture. "Lay some of that girl talk on me, girl."

Starfire smiles too for a moment before getting serious again. "Okay. Well, something recently happened to me, but I am going to tell the story as if it is a scenario that has happened to a friend of mine," she begins.

"Uh, you do realize you just said that out loud, right?" Cyborg asks, but Starfire continues like she didn't even hear him.

"So, I have a friend, and she was enjoying a lovely walk with a girlfriend of hers."

"Alright, you and this chick were walking together," Cyborg says for clarification.

"No no. A _friend_ of mine was walking with a girlfriend of mine," Starfire says.

"Alright, the hypotheticals have completely escaped me at this point, but go ahead," Cyborg tells her before giving her his undivided attention.

Starfire takes a deep breath before continuing.

"Alright. Well… the friend and the friend of the friend were walking, and then they took a rest to regain their strength. During the momentary recess, we bonded over the feelings of loneliness and misunderstandings of earth life. She told me I was strong and beautiful, and I told her that she was as well."

Cyborg raises an eyebrow. "Alright. I think I'm following. So then what happened with your… _friend?"_

Starfire takes another breath, this one hitching a little as her heart begins to race.

"Well, she… she kissed me."

Cyborg's eyes widen now with obvious surprise in them. "Dang. That escalated quickly."

Starfire steels herself a moment before continuing. "I was… confused. I did not understand why she would kiss me like this. When I asked her why, she told me that it was a 'friend kiss.'"

"A friend kiss?" Cyborg questions.

"Yes," Starfire replies. "She told me that it was a kiss to show how much our friendship means to her, and that it was very special. So special that I must not tell anyone else about it."

Cyborg takes a moment to wrap his head around this new information, then composes a response.

"Alright, so, your friend kissed you-"

"No, she kissed my _friend."_

" _Right…_ So, your friend kissed your friend. Uhm, what did you- your friend do, after she was kissed?"

"Well, I was quite perplexed. I was certain that kisses were gestures meant to be shared between romantic partners," Starfire explains.

"Okay… Well, maybe she kissed you-"

"My friend."

"Maybe she kissed _your friend…"_ Cyborg proceeds, clearly getting frustrated with Starfire's inconsistencies, "...because she _wanted_ it to be a romantic gesture?"

"That is strange," Starfire thinks aloud.

"Uh, you do know that sometimes boys like boys and girls like girls, right?" Cyborg asks.

"I do know that, but that would mean she lied about it being a friend kiss. Why would she do that?"

"Maybe she realized you didn't feel the same way and didn't wanna make things weirder than already were?" Cyborg speculates. "Man, I did _not_ expect to be talking to you about the birds and the bees today," he says to himself before taking a sip of his drink.

They take a moment to think about everything, and then Starfire speaks up again.

"This does not make sense! I have never heard of the friend kisses, and Raven was in a relationship with Beast Boy! Why has she been acting so strange?"

Upon realizing Starfire just said Raven's name, he does an actual spit take. "Woah woah woah… Time out!" he says as he wipes his lips with his forearm. "Did you just say Raven? _Raven_ kissed you?!"

Starfire becomes visibly flustered. "I- my friend- uhm- Raven…" she stammers. She concedes soon enough though. "Okay, this was not the story of my hypothetical friend. It was me. And the hypothetical girlfriend _was_ Raven."

"Yeah, I picked up on that," Cyborg says with a grimace. He ebbs on the grumpiness though as he forms a rebuttal. "But just so I got this straight, you're telling me that Raven kissed you? On the lips?!"

"Shhh shh shhhh!" Starfire frantically shushes as she shoves her finger to his lips. She does a neurotic little look around to make sure no one is paying attention to them, and when she's sure the coast is clear, she presses forward.

"Yes, Raven delivered the kiss onto me. I have felt so strange about it ever since," she confesses. "It is as if she does not wish to speak to me now. Before then, she seemed quite content in spending time with me. She was even the one to suggest that we go for a walk! I do not understand what I have done wrong…"

Cyborg rests a comforting hand over hers. "Hey, you didn't do anything wrong," he assures her. "I think Raven is just trying to give you some space while she works through her feelings. I mean, you know how she is about that stuff."

"I suppose that make sense," Starfire says, but there's still some disappointment in her voice.

"Hey," Cyborg starts with a smile, "It doesn't mean she doesn't still wanna be friends. I just think maybe she's a little bummed out you didn't like her the way she likes you, or thinks she likes you."

Starfire sneaks a look over to the table where the girl in discussion sits, and Raven happens to look over shortly after. She briefly smiles at her before turning away with some transparent despondence.

And with this exchange of looks, it's as if the proverbial light bulb shines over Starfire's head.

"Oh my gosh!... You are right, Cyborg!" she blurts out. "Raven… She-"

"She might," Cyborg finishes for her, and he can't help but smile a little at the prospect. "I mean, it's hard to say for sure, but I ain't never heard of no 'friend kisses' either, know what I'm sayin'?"

Starfire takes a moment to digest his words, wearing the feeling that comes with an epiphany clearly on her face.

Which… just makes Cyborg smile more. Starfire picks up on this, and calls him out on it.

"What are you smiling at me like that for?" she asks with a wince.

"Oh, this? This is my shipping smile," Cyborg proudly states. "I smiles it when I think about two of my friends becoming _more_ than just friends."

"Whuh- what do you mean?" Starfire questions with an almost beseeching tone.

"What I mean is: maybe you two would be kind of cute together. I mean, I was kind of on team BBRae, team Robfire there for a while… But maybe _this_ is the couple for me. Hmm… I think I'll call you… Starven! Er, wait!... Ravenfire! Ah yeah!"

While he gushes about his new portmanteau, Starfire sneaks another gaze at Raven from afar. This time she's able to do so without the other girl noticing, and she's able to just get lost looking upon her for a little while.

It's the first time she sees her in such a way. Raven was always just her friend; just like Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Robin. She never even considered the prospect that she could feel that way about her, and more importantly… if she _herself_ could feel that way.

But now...

"Is it possible?"

She goes back to looking out the glass with a face that conveys deep thought, and Cyborg tries to get her attention. "Is what possible? Starfire?"

She doesn't answer though. She's just got her thinking to do.

"Oh, you're doing that look out some glass deep thinkin' again," Cyborg thinks aloud. Then he shrugs, and kicks his feet up on the table before taking a drink of his soda. "Oh well."

" _Hmm… I wonder what Batman and Gordon's ship name would be? Never mind… That's just wrong…"_ he wonders as he too looks out to the world beyond the glass.

* * *

While this was all going on, Raven had the company of her ex-boyfriend Beast Boy, which wasn't weird at all.

Or, yes it was.

Shortly after Cyborg left, the two got nice and uncomfortable in a good old fashioned awkward silence. Raven would try and sneak in little pining glances at her crush Starfire here and there, but it became increasingly difficult with Beast Boy sneaking in his own little glances at her.

Finally, just as her discomfort is almost enough to call him out on it, he speaks up.

"So, how ya been?" he coyly asks her.

It's a nice enough gesture, and it's actually is enough to make Raven feel a little remorseful for almost wanting to snap at him.

She knows he means well, and just like they established with their previous conversation, he wants things to be normal between them again.

" _This is one of those treading the waters things"_ she thinks to herself.

"I've been okay," she timidly answers. She doesn't elaborate, and it makes for a brief hiccup in conversation, but she's quick on her feet to make a recovery much like she was with a certain someone about a certain kiss the other day.

"What about you?" she asks him now.

"I've been good," he answers with a little nod. He puts on a smile though as he thinks of a new topic of conversation. "You know, I was playing that stupid game with Cy the other night, and we made some necromancer demon chicks… It kind of reminded me of you."

She half smiles at that. "Oh really? How so?" she asks.

"Well, we made sure the leader character had a really dry sense of humor," he quips.

That half smile becomes a full smile. For treading waters, this really isn't so bad. "Hmm, I don't know anybody like that," she jokes back.

And they actually find themselves laughing a little laugh at their back-and-forth. It's the first laugh they've shared in a long time, and it really feels great.

But, of course, Raven just so happens to catch a glimpse of the red headed Tameranian girl staring out at the world through the glass though.

She stops laughing, and slouches a sorry slouch accompanied by a sad little sigh that pretty much sucks the life out of the room, or at least the table where she and Beast Boy are sitting.

"Did I say something wrong?" Beast Boy asks with concern.

She frowns to herself before responding to him. "No, it's not you. It's just-"

There's hesitation on both their behalves, but Beast Boy takes initiative.

"Yeah, I get it. Things are still a little weird between us, huh?" he says while anxiously rubbing the back of his neck.

"No! I mean, no…" Raven sputters. "It's… something else…"

BB curiously raises his brow. "Okay. Well, what's the matter? Everything alright?"

Raven waves him off. "It's fine, really."

Beast Boy frowns, but he decides not to push any further. "Alright. Well, I mean, if you decide you need to talk to somebody or whatever. You can always bend my ear," he suggests. "If fact…" he adds with a smile, and then he morphs his head into that of an elephant so he can flap his big ol' ears around like a goof.

As much as she doesn't want to laugh at his being an idiot, she can't help but break into a little chuckle. "You're such a goon," she tells him.

He turns his head back to normal and smiles. "I know. But for real, I got your back, girl. And that ain't changing."

They share a look of happy understanding, and then turn away from one another once the point has been made. Beast Boy decides to check his communicator, and Raven just kind of wanders her eyes nowhere in particular.

She just can't help herself though. As much as she wants to just forget that kiss ever happened, or the very thought that she could ever maybe be more than just friends with this girl…

She settles her gaze on Starfire, who actually turns out to be looking over to her.

For a moment, she tenses up, and her heart begins to race. But she decides to play it off cool, offering a soft little smile to her before turning away. Maybe Starfire keeps looking, maybe she doesn't. It's something she's dying to know while needing to forget all the same.

She wanders her eyes to Beast Boy again, and he's focused on the screen of his communicator. She steels herself for a little while before deciding that, if worse comes to worse… she can always summon enough latent demon energy to destroy the universe.

Or at least anyone who would blab about her secret.

WIth that, she put her big girl cloak on, and decides it's time to work through her feelings with someone other than projections of her own self.

"Beast Boy," she begins, and he looks up from his communicator to acknowledge her once more. "If I tell you something, do you promise to keep it a secret?"

"Uhm," he utters as he thinks it over and pockets his communicator, "Sure. Definitely."

He meets his Azarathian ex with another grin, which reminds her that, even if he _says_ things are cool, he might not take the news of her switching teams so well.

"And do you promise not to hate me?" she adds, almost remorsefully.

"What? No way," he assures her. "Heck, if I can sell Cy's stupid BER CD and he brush it off like it's nothin', I don't think there's much you can do to rock the boat."

"You might not think that when I tell you the truth," Raven quietly retorts.

She braces herself, then takes the proverbial leap of faith.

"Beast Boy, I have feelings for someone. Someone you know," she tells him.

He dons a somewhat surprised expression before gruffly frowning. "Let me guess… You've been talking to Aqualad?"

She rolls her eyes. "No. It's not Aqualad."

He gets over his brief spell and eases up on the attitude. "Oh. Well… Okay… So, who is it then?" he softly asks.

After a moment to let the words linger, and to let the awkward silence get nice and tense, Raven decides to follow through.

"I'll tell you, but please, _please_ don't say anything to the others. Not Robin, not Cyborg… and especially not Starfire…"

"Afraid you might step on her toes?" he says somewhat jokingly before getting serious again. "Hey, seriously, I won't say a word to anybody. I promise. And I promise not to get mad."

His demeanor becomes a little somber before he continues.

"When we broke up, I realized it meant you'd start seeing other people eventually. I mean, a catch like you can't stay single forever," he says with a soft little smile.

Raven returns one of her own. "Well… Thanks."

She takes a deep breath, then looks him dead in the eyes.

"Beast Boy… I like Starfire."

His eyes grow as wide as saucers, and he stays dumb as she just stares at her. It goes on long enough to make her regret saying anything. Not just to him, but to Starfire on that bridge at the park, or in her bedroom when she needed advice, or, _ever_ really.

Just when she feels like she may need to open up a portal and then reduce to a puddle so she can spill inside of it, that green face of Beast Boy's finally begins to change.

As a matter of fact, he _smiles._

"No way," he begins, the corners of his mouth stretching wider with every passing second. "That's awesome!"

Of all the things she anticipated he might say about her revelation, _"That's awesome"_ was not one of them. It's not unwelcome, but she surely isn't sure how to respond to it, which is made obvious by her reply.

"Huh?"

"That's too cool," Beast Boy follows-up. "I mean, really? You really like her?"

His enthusiasm is the very last thing she expected. Shock? Yeah. Disappointment? Sure. Anger even? Maybe.

But… _"That's too cool?"_

"Did- did you hear me right? I said I like Starfire," Raven is sure to reiterate, almost with a hint of guilt in her voice.

"Are you saying that's a bad thing?" Beast Boy contends, "She's a doll! She's amazing!"

He straightens up and cuts some slack as he realizes his good intentions could be misinterpreted, probably because of the way Raven narrows her eyes at him.

"I mean, not that _I_ think of her like that… But I definitely can see why someone would."

They take a moment to return to form, and Beast Boy can't help but keep smiling.

"Seriously, Raven, I'm happy for you. I'm glad you're telling me this."

She folds her arms as she tries to play it cool, but enough of her true vehemence bleeds through the facade with the glistening in her eyes.

"You really mean that?"

"Darn right, I do, momma," he gladly tells her.

She softly smiles as she looks down to the table, unable to hide how nice it really is to hear him say that.

He waits a moment, then decides to start prying like the leech he could turn himself into. "So… Gimme the details! What happened? When did it happen? Are you guys gonna tell Robin?" he says with a little playfulness.

She rolls her eyes. "Eww. You're spazzing," she jokes back.

"Come on! Don't leave me hangin'!" BB excitedly responds.

"Alright, alright. Just settle down before you have a coronary," she retorts, looking around to make sure he hasn't drawn too much attention with his sudden loudness.

Most importantly, she sneaks another look at Starfire, but by now she and Cyborg have started just staring out the glass panes for some reason.

" _They must not have anything to talk about,"_ she thinks.

She turns her attention back to Eager McBeaver though, who alluringly raises his eyebrows to egg her on.

"Okay… But I swear to Flutterpie and Pinky Shy if you tell _anyone_ about this-"

"Oof. Your two favorite Pegasuses? _Pegasees?..._ Alright. My lips are sealed," Beast Boy says.

With that, Raven sighs, and readies herself to start from the beginning.

"Well… It all started after the last time we went to go get pizza."

* * *

 **Holy ess Night Begins to Shine has been my earworm for like a week now.**

 **Oy waht wif da cliffhanger cous? Well, this chapter was getting pretty long, so I decided to stop it here. I promise the next one will pick up right where this one leaves off. I also have a busy week ahead of me with real life being like, "Hey, you should do stuff," (meh, amirite?), so I wanna get something out so no one thinks I've died.**

 **Anyway...**

 **I really like the platonic pairing of Starfire and Cyborg for some reason, so I thought I'd explore it here with that 'girl talk' scene. I had a lot of fun writing it, so I hope you peoples had fun reading it.**

 **Also, the joke about Batman x Gordon was a play on the somewhat creepy relationship the two have in Teen Titans Go! I don't care what anyone says, TTG is hilarious.**

 **As always, thanks for reading. Sorry if I dragged this out more than Ru Paul, but I wanted these talks to happen so we can set the next series of events into motion. You'll see what I mean during the next mission, should you choose to accept it.**

 **This message will self destruct in 3… 2… 1...**


	10. Making Moves

**Guys and girls, I'm sorry it took so long to get back on this. I've started working again, and I've truthfully just been more motivated to work on other projects.**

 **That being said, I did promise you all and myself that I would see this through, so here we are. I hope you all enjoy:)**

* * *

"Mmm-nom… M'kay… So, I think I get what you're putting down," Beast Boy says with a mouth full of vegan pizza. Raven just looks on with her usual brand of deadpan demeanor, anticipating his response to her story about how she came to have feelings for Starfire.

BB licks the remaining pizza residue off his fingertips, then lets out a little belch. "Oof, excuse me!"

More waiting from a now impatient Raven. "Well?" she finally blurts out.

"Well what?" Beast Boy uncharmingly replies.

"Oh my Zod," Raven says with a face palm.

"Oh, you and Starfire! Right!" Beast Boy remembers. "Sorry… I've been distracted by… Other things…"

Raven sighs as she leans back in her chair, and she steals a glance at her crush. Starfire and Cyborg have finally gotten around to getting their order for more pizza filled, this time accounting for the former's nine stomachs. The _latter_ steals a little glance over at his friends too, but quickly and suspiciously turns back around when he sees Raven.

"Okay? Uhm… It looks like they're coming back over soon. Let's just- let's just drop it," Raven dejectedly says as she deflates into a sad little slouch over the table.

"Hey, come on. We got plenty of time," Beast Boy encourages. "Besides; I really think this is something we should talk about now."

"Why?" Raven says, he interested visibly peaking.

"Well, I don't know if you've noticed; but you're not the only one on the team with a thing for Star Wars," Beast Boy quips while pointing outside to a certain caped crusader.

And not the sick cowl and bat shaped electric guitar either.

"Dang it! I hate the mobile site to this thing!" Robin complains while trying to get back to that fellow reader of aberrant script on his smartphone.

Raven rolls her eyes. "Pffft… He'll make a move on Starfire when people start using birth control in Royal Woods…"

"I don't know," Beast Boy assertively responds, "He's been asking me and Cy for pointers lately. I think he's getting pretty serious about it."

Raven steals another little look at Cyborg and Starfire, and while the red haired beauty is having a hay day at the expense of her unenthusiastic looking clerk with black bangs and freckles, Cyborg is trying not to make it obvious that he keeps looking over to Raven too.

She frowns at this, but then returns her attention to her green ex-boyfriend. "Is that why he keeps looking back at us like an idiot?"

"He's probably feeling bad about the Live 2 Lynn thing," BB says with a shrug.

"Man, you two are so stupid with your references that nobody gets but you," Raven rudely comments.

"Meh," he cleverly responds.

He disregards her rudeness though as he becomes visibly excitable. "Okay, listen momma. I'm gonna help you woo Starfire. I gots the perfect plan for how to go abouts it, too," he explains with his signature superfluous pluralizing.

Raven perks up. Well, as much as someone as gothic as her _can_ perk up.

"You'd do that for me? Even if- _you know…"_

Beast Boy rests a comforting hand over hers. "Hey, I just want you to be happy. No matter what."

They share a smile, then BB returns to form.

"Okay! So here's whatchu gotta do, Rae Rae. You gots to ask her on a date. _Except…"_ he says with a dramatic pause. "It's gonna be a _not-date."_

Raven meets him with more of that pan of death. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"Hey, hey! Don't be so quick to judge!" Beast Boy defends. "I managed to win _you_ over, didn't I?"

"You also turned me off from men, apparently," she retorts.

"Oof. That stung a little," BB playfully says. But he scoots closer to her and proceeds to throw down that knowledge. "For reals though. You said she cheesed about your kiss, right?"

"Cheesed?" Raven questions.

"Focus," he continues. "You needs to be all subtle and stuff to make her realize she likes you too. If you just straight up ask her out; all she's gonna do is get confused some more. But if you make it just seem like you guys are just hanging out again or whatever, then no harm done if nothing happens! And if something _does_ happen, it'll be all spontaneous and romantic and stuff!"

Raven's expression could kill. "That's… That's…"

But then, she ebbs. "That's my best shot. Isn't it?" she admits.

Beast Boy nods. "Listen. Starfire's impressionable. Once you… work a little magic… she'll be just as crazy about you as you are her."

"You really think so?" Raven softly asks.

"Girl, I know so," he says.

Before much else can be said though, Cyborg is rushing over to the table. He looks over his shoulder to make sure Starfire is occupied with her pizza pies, then practically smacks the table as he arrives.

"Jeez!" Raven cusses with his sudden commotion.

He ignores her though, instead focusing solely on Beast Boy.

"Bro, listen to me," he starts, looking over his shoulder again to make sure there are no eavesdroppers. "We gotta ixnay on the Obinrae. New OTP, fam."

"What the _heck_ are you talking about?!" Raven blurts out, not even trying to hide the fact she's listening in.

Cyborg again ignores her as he gets within an inch of BB's grill. "Somebody _else_ likes the target. Somebody _ELSE,"_ he furthers, trying to nonchalantly nod his head in Raven's direction.

"Will you stop being an idiot for two seconds and tell me why you're whispering about me?!" Raven orders.

Cyborg finally looks her in the eye, then pulls Beast Boy into a tight, desperate squeeze. "We've been exposed!" he cries.

" _You're hurting me,"_ his so called bro whimpers while in his death clutch.

"Friends! Oh, friends!" Starfire calls out as she begins making her way over with an impressive stack of pizza boxes. "I have used the barter scrip to acquire more of the pizza delicacies!"

She's not the only Titan whose timing is impeccable, as Robin too makes his way in through the entrance door. He takes a deep breath with his posture fixed perfectly, and then follows Starfire over to the table to join her in joining the others.

"I do hope you all have saved room for more," Starfire jokes with a little giggle. She then sees Cyborg releasing Beast Boy from his squeeze, and raises a brow. "Were we exchanging hugs? Why was I not told about this?" she wonders before turning to Raven and giving her an unexpected big hug. It's certainly not unwelcome though. Despite not returning the display of affection, Raven does smile and blush a little bit.

Robin clears his throat though to beg for everyone's attention.

"Uhm, actually Starfire… That reminds me of something," he begins.

The other three Titans all get wide eyed as they realize it's about to go _down._

"Starfire… I've really enjoyed getting to know you all these years. Man. How long's it been now?"

"It feels like this crap's been going on since 2003!" the clerk with freckles and bangs barks with an emo drawl.

"Cool your tits, Maggie!" Robin hollers back before clearing his throat again. "As I was saying… These last few years have been really special for me. And, while that's because of all of you guys, I have to admit; you've grown the fondest of all on me," Robin tells Starfire.

"Dang, he's really doing it!" Cyborg whispers to Beast Boy.

They all watch on with disbelief as their leader gets ready to go for the win regarding the seemingly unfazed Starfire.

"Starfire, I like you. I _really_ like you. Would you… wanna go see a movie with me tonight? Just the two of us?" he asks with an earnest smile.

All of the spectating patrons "Awww" at the proposal, except for a certain emo clerk.

"Who writes this crap?" she cynically states.

Everyone eagerly awaits Starfire's answer. The tension grows and grows until it's reached fever pitch, but finally, she grants him a response.

"Okee dokee," she answers with a smile.

Once her words have registered for everyone, they allow their emotions to properly convey. For Robin, it's pleasant surprise. For Beast Boy and Cyborg, it's just surprise. And for Raven…

It hurts…

"Wait. So… Yes? You mean you'll go with me?" Robin reiterates with a smile.

"Sure. I love the cinema," Starfire says with a certain degree of carelessness as she shrugs and smiles.

"Great! Uhm, I'll go ahead and order us some tickets," Robin says as he sits down beside Raven and pulls out his phone.

While he happily punches away on the touchpad, Raven can't help but sorrowfully look down to the surface of the table as she realizes it may be too late for her to do anything about her feelings for Starfire now.

Cyborg and Beast Boy realize all too well, and it doesn't take long for Star and Robin to pick up on her disappointment also.

"Is something wrong, Raven?" Robin considerately asks her.

She looks to him and sees the sincerity in his eyes, and has to look away. She sees Beast Boy and Cyborg meeting her with the same pitiful expressions, and they're just as painful to watch.

Then, there's Starfire. As expected, she too wears her sadness over Raven's obvious pain all over, her bright green eyes boring a hole right down to her half-demon soul.

That's what hurts the most.

"Yeah… I'm fine…" she lies, and she frees herself from anyone's gaze again so she can try and force herself to enjoy some of the pizza before her.

She doesn't.

* * *

 **Listen… Vegan pizza is actually pretty great.**

 **Some of my descriptions about Cy and Beast Boy here could really be taken out of context if someone skim read this. (I say "if" like anyone would want to skim read through** _ **my**_ **work.** _ **Ha!)**_

 **Okay, so I know this was short, but I wanted to get something out again sooner than later so nobody thinks I've MOM'd this thing. I'll be honest, motivation has been scarce to work on this, but not to the extent that I'll drop it completely. I still love Teen Titans, and with the new movie coming out here soon (can I get a What What), hopefully I can get compelled to finish this thing before the summer's over.**

 **I guess what I'm saying is, we're transitioning into the final act, but it just may take me a little bit to actually get there. Of course, teamwork does make the dream work, so I know I can do it with the support of my dutiful minions. I wouldn't expect any different though. You guys are always awesome even when I don't ask you to be.**

 **(Except YOU guest reviewer for Wide Open Spaces. YOU are a boner.)**

 **Alright, I've rambled enough. Thanks as always for reading, and please stay tuned for more. And while some of you may think you're too cool for the TTG movie, know that I'ma be Fandangoing tickets for it as soon as my skinny fat butt is able to.**


	11. Upbeat, Upbeat!

**I LIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE!**

 **Barely, but still. Sorry again for taking forever. Insert generic excuses here.**

 **None of that matters, especially the me being alive part. What matters is, Raven has issues, and so does Starfire. Will they work things out? I dunno, but if you've read all my other stuff~**

 **Enjoy!**

 **PS. The TTG movie was great, and if you haven't heard "Upbeat Inspirational Song About Life," well, refer to the title, friendo.**

* * *

"It has literally been _forever!"_ Beast Boy complains as a new episode of his favorite show begins playing on the TV. It was pretty mediocre and didn't have the best numbers critically or commercially, but the creator had good intentions, and the small cult following gave it vibrant life.

Even if new episodes did take a very long time to get out.

Cyborg enters the room with a glass of almond milk in hand, and proceeds to join his green friend on the couch to watch it.

"Hey B, what's good?" he asks, disregarding his usual bro snark or uber enthusiasm.

"Just kind of hangin' man," he answers.

And for a moment, awkward silence ensues.

It doesn't take long for Beast Boy to address it.

"Okay, so it's not just me, right? Things have been weird since Robin asked Starfire out," he thinks aloud.

"Phew…" Cyborg sighs with relief. "I'm glad it's not just me. Seriously man, it has been really weird. Robin's been acting all nervous and corny and cringier than usual. Starfire's been way too quiet, and Raven…"

He doesn't finish. He turns to Beast Boy with a privied look in his eyes, and Beast Boy meets him with the same expression.

For better or worse, it's enough for them to know that, they each understand what's up with Raven.

Robin soon makes his way into the living area, wearing a semi-formal outfit for his upcoming date to the movie with Starfire.

"Hey guys, what's happening?" he asks.

The other two boys look to their leader, then to each other, then back to Robin.

"Just watching a new episode of this one show," Cyborg answers.

Robin paces forward to check what it is, then winces as he recognizes it. "Oh. It's an alright show. I just don't like how they portray that one guy. One minute he's a total nub, and the next he plays it cool. Make up your minds, will ya?" he says, as if someone could actually be listening.

He then moves on from his brief interaction with Beast Boy and Cyborg to go gussy up for his date, leaving them to themselves once more.

"How do you feel about this?" Beast Boy asks his bro.

Cyborg sighs again. "I don't know man. Part of me wants to be happy that Robin finally made a move on Starfire. But…"

He looks to BB with the same privied expression as before, and again, Beast Boy returns it.

And it's his turn to sigh.

"Raven…" he answers for him.

Belatedly, Cyborg forms a response.

"So, how do you feel about it? I mean, it's different. You dated her."

"Yeah, I know man," Beast Boy begins. "And like you said, I like that Robin finally made a move. But at the same time… I just think- I just think there's something there between Starfire and her. I dunno. They wouldn't be acting so weird if there wasn't."

"Fair enough," Cyborg says as he takes a swig of his almond milk. "Say, I just realized that, in this show you watch, people are always eating and drinking stuff. Fatties," he jokes to lighten the mood.

"Yeah. That's nothing compared to all the dorky references to obscure stuff though," Beast Boy jokes back.

It feels good to share a little laugh about the topic of discussion, but they get back to their initial conversation soon enough.

"The thing is; I think Starfire doesn't know _what_ she wants. Not just from Raven, but from Robin either. I dunno. She doesn't think about this stuff the way we do," Cyborg says.

"I don't know, man," Beast Boy rebuts. "She might not think like us, but I still think she'll figure out what she wants like- deep down. You know what I mean?"

Cyborg considers his heartfelt words, then nods with approval.

"Yeah. I know what you mean."

Shortly after speaking those aforementioned words, a door opens across the hall, and Raven steps out of it.

She lets out a heavy sigh from her frowning mouth, and then starts levitating towards the bathroom at the end of the hall. She lethargically raps on the door.

She tries to say, _"Is anybody in there?"_ but it actually comes out as, "uh hum nuh huh?"

"Occupied," Robin responds from inside the restroom, where he happily combs his hair for his forthcoming date with Starfire. His eyes happen to wander to the toilet, and of course the toilet seat is up, because he lives with a bunch of ne'er-do-wells like the actual, literal animal that is Beast Boy.

His anime forehead vein pops out, and he slams the thing shut. Something catches his eye though, and he opens the toilet seat back up.

"Huh. I can't tell if that's a pepper, a poop, or a pepper someone pooped. Oh well," he says with a shrug.

...

Raven sighs again as she realizes she can't even mope in the bathroom in peace, and decides to just turn around and go back to her bedroom… to wait to _diiiiiiiiiiiie._

But, by happenstance, Starfire exits her bedroom, and steps out into the very same hallway. She's dressed in a ceremonial blue-violet dress that accentuates her toned figure, revealing just enough of her collar, stomach, and legs to the naked eye.

Upon seeing the beguilingly dressed girl, Raven's astonishment becomes transparent. Her eyes widen like saucers, and her mouth is stuck between wanting to fall to the floor and wanting to pucker from lemons.

Starfire notices Raven noticing her, and becomes pink in the face. Their interactions were already scarce, but with the way Raven gawks at her, she can't help but feel this degree of embarrassment.

And yet, she's strangely glad.

"Uhm, hello Raven," she timidly begins.

Raven swallows the spit she's choking on as she stares at Starfire's exposed collar, then musters the Super Saiyan-esque strength to look to her emerald eyes. For the first time in… forever… she's actually wearing makeup. Eyeliner, mascara, blush, the whole nine yards.

If her resolve wasn't so firm, Raven could swoon back into an interdimensional purgatory of gayness and purple prose.

"Just when I thought I might be able to move on, you go and do this to me," she almost inaudibly utters.

"I am sorry?" Starfire responds.

Raven shakes her head to get back in the game. "Uhm, no, you're fine. I mean-" she awkwardly fumbles out.

The two girls just share a mutual gaze for a moment, but have to look away from one another as their cheeks burn brighter.

"I uh… So… You're going out with Robin tonight, huh?" Raven is able to say in an attempt to overcome her numbing dumbness.

"Yes. We will be going to the cinema, as the hipsters call it," Starfire straightly answers.

Silence ensues, giving them both ample time to recognize that any further conversation will probably go horribly wrong. It's best to just end it now, so Star can go have fun on her date, and Raven can go back to her room to reflect on all things melancholy and sorrowful.

"So… I guess I'll just- see you later?" Raven almost guiltily tells her crush, hanging her head lowly as she does.

"Oh," Starfire says before sorrowfully looking to the floor. "I suppose I will talk to you later, then."

With that, Raven floats on back the way she came, leaving Starfire to herself. The redheaded girl lets out a dejected sigh as she watches her friend, the one who trusted her enough to share a friend kiss, go her own way.

Without a word, she simply returns to her room, slowly closing the door behind her.

Meanwhile Raven is about to do the same…

Until she happens to glance over to the gentlemen on the couch, who look to her with piteous expressions. She wants to pretend she's fine, or at the very least, that she's annoyed by their obvious sympathy for her… but she just doesn't have it in her.

Beast Boy's frown curves into a soft, sincere smile, and Cyborg's does too shortly after.

Seeing their gesture brings a warmth to Raven's pattering heart, and she's able weakly half smile back before placing her hand to the knob of her bedroom door.

Cy and BB realize they're better off leaving her alone, and reluctantly decide to return their eyes to the TV screen playing their tacky program.

Raven takes a deep breath, and then, removes her hand from the doorknob.

"What are you guys watching?" she simply asks before pusillanimously pussyfooting her way to the couch.

Beast Boy and Cyborg exchange pleasantly surprised looks, then again smile to her.

"It's called Ottoline, Jane, and Some Dumb Other Third Thing. Wanna watch?" Beast Boy answers with a smile.

Raven cringes. "Uh… That… That sounds pretty terrible…" She eases up though, and allows another smile to come to her face. "But why not?"

She scoots herself down on the couch by her friends, and they share more smiles before relaxing and enjoying each other's company.

* * *

Meanwhile, Starfire stands before her vanity, trying to brush her hair, even though she's already brushed it more than enough tonight.

She should be happy! She has a date with Robin tonight! He's a nice guy when he's not glued to his phone looking at cringey Crowd House stuff, and he's always proven to put his team before himself. And in some ways, Starfire even more so than the others.

" _So… Why do I keep thinking about Raven?"_

She puts the brush down, and paces over to her bed before allowing herself to fall back on it and look up to the ceiling. She gives her nearby pillow a good punch, because that's all it's really good for, then grabs on to her nearby Alfred plushie to cuddle with.

Sometimes she wished she had someone real to cuddle with, like maybe her sister Blackfire, or even Silkie- if he'd stop stuffing his fat face for two seconds.

She wouldn't even mind cuddling with… Raven…

She lets out a sigh. Ever since that friend kiss, things had just been so odd. Raven was always distant, but how could she give Starfire that, and then just go back to being her brooding self? Was it still because things didn't work with Beast Boy? Things seemed to be alright between them now…

But… it had to be _something._ There was Raven, and then there was _sad_ Raven. Sure, they were hard to differentiate to the average Joe, Jane, or Ottoline; but Starfire knew something was bothering her.

" _Perhaps I could try to help her again? She seemed to have fun at the expense of Mumbo Jumbo at the Pretty Pretty Pegasus convention. And we did enjoy that day at the park together being insubordinate and finding that adorable kitten…"_

" _She… She kissed me… She trusted me enough to do that. We are the bestest of friends. I've never heard of anyone else friend kissing, I always assumed it was just for lovers…"_

She sits up with plushy Alfred still in her embrace, and a thoughtful look comes to her face.

" _The earthlings are so confusing… RAVEN is so confusing…"_

A gentle knock comes to her door, breaking her of her monologue induced trance.

"You may enter," she politely says to the mysterious knocker.

It isn't a bird. It isn't a plane. it's Robin.

"Hey you," he greets with a soft smile.

Starfire forces a smile of her own. "Hello," she simply says.

Robin looks to see her holding on to plushie Alfred, and amusedly huffs. "I see you've already found a suitor for the evening," he jokes.

His attempt at humor goes over her head at first, but she grasps it like her plushie butler soon enough. "Oh… Yes…" she coyly responds.

Robin's smile wanes as he recognizes the somber manner of her face. "Is… is everything alright, Starfire? Are you feeling okay?" he asks, taking a seat on the bed a comfortable distance away from her.

"What? I am well. Everything is… fine…" she fibs.

Her gloomy green irises say otherwise, and Robin learned more than just how to look super fashionable from his caped crusader mentor. He also learned how to be a detective, a gumshoe…

A dick.

"Starfire," he begins, carefully resting his hand within inches of meeting her leg. "If you don't want to go out tonight, it can wait for some other time," he tells her, _"Even if I did spend forty dollars on these movie tickets,"_ he mumbles to himself.

Starfire shakes her head, and places Alfred to the side. "It is alright. Leaving the Tower for a little while will help distract me from my woes."

Robin, who is still wearing his mask by the way, because of course he is, meets her with incredulousness.

"That might be true. But as your leader, I'll tell you it's a good idea to face your problems head on."

He takes the dive, and ghosts his fingers onto her leg.

"And as your friend, I'll tell you that, I'm here for you."

Starfire feels her lips curving into a little smile thanks to Robin's endearing gesture. And yet, despite his best efforts to be here for her, she can't help but think of Raven.

She softly sighs, and motions her leg away from him.

"Robin… I must tell you something," she starts.

He's taken back, but he keeps a cool head. "Alright. Anything Starfire. Like I said, I'm here for you," he repeats.

Starfire gets off her bed and rushes to the door to make sure no one is eavesdropping, then scurries back to the bed to rejoin Robin.

He meets her with a confused eyebrow raise as she plops down beside him. "Okay, I need to ask you something, but you _must_ promise you will keep the open mind. I wish not to be laughed at for… my misunderstandings…"

"You're fine, Starfire. What's on your mind?" Robin asks before checking his watch. _"And is it gonna take longer than ten minutes because that movie starts at 9:00 and I'd like to sneak some of Cyborg's Bon Bons with me into the theater."_

Starfire heavily sighs. "Okay… Here it the goes."

"The truth is, I have been very conflicted in my feelings… because of Raven…"

"Raven?" Robin replies. "Is everything alright between you two?"

"I do not know," Starfire answers. "Something happened between us, and it has made everything quite strange ever since."

"Okay. What happened?" Robin asks.

"It… it is complicated. She requested that I do not tell anyone. But I have already broken that promise by telling Cyborg."

"Calm down, Star. Whatever it is, _that you told Cyborg before telling me,"_ he grumbles to himself, "You can trust me not to say anything."

Starfire takes a deep breath, then continues. "Very well. A few days ago, well… Raven… Raven kissed me," she quickly gets out before hiding her face in her forearms.

Robin's masked eyes practically bug out of his titanic teenage skull. "Raven _kissed_ you?"

"Yes," Starfire timidly answers, and she proceeds to elaborate as Robin just stares in awe.

"She told me that she wanted to symbolize how much our friendship means to her with the kiss. She said that it was very sacred, and that it was to stay a secret between the two of us. But I do not understand it? Why would she want to keep it a secret? Why have I never heard of the friend kisses?..."

"And why do I feel so strange now that I think about her?..." she admits as she falls back onto the bed again, her eyes all but welling up.

A complicated blend of emotions begin to flow through Robin's chest. For starters, forty dollars could have bought him some grade A Crowd House fanart of his favorite crack ship, and now it has essentially been wasted. Starfire isn't going to be able to enjoy a movie with him tonight, and he knows well why.

It's the same reason he feels so bad for her right now, and the same reason that he selfishly feels some disappointment.

She doesn't feel the same way about him that he does her, because, she probably feels that way about someone else...

He sighs, but bucks up and puts a smile on as he eyes the two movie tickets he takes out of his pocket.

"Starfire… It sounds to me like you two need to talk about this," he suggests.

He then reaches out the tickets, and invites her to take them.

She meets his gesture with some trepidation, unsure of how to react. "What is this? Are you worried you will lose the tickets in the same way you lost faith in humanity after filming that Titans trailer?"

"We don't talk about that," Robin sharply says before allowing his sincerity to return to him.

"Just… here. Why don't you ask Raven to go to the movies with you instead."

Starfire just looks at the stubs with uncertainty before trajecting the look to Robin.

"But… This is supposed to be our night for leisurely activities?"

"I know, and it's fine. We can hang out some other time," Robin gladly responds.

Starfire thinks it over, but still isn't sold. "I… I don't think it is a good idea. Raven will not want to go. And I will feel too strange asking her."

Robin bucks up even more, realizing he'll need to do what he does best as a leader by pushing his teammate.

"Well… Maybe you will. Maybe it will be a little hard to face her. But I know it'll be worth it, and I know Raven values your friendship enough to work things out. One way or another."

He reaches out his hand to rest it comfortably on her shoulder, but stops halfway through. He decides that, instead, he'll just give her a friendly thumbs up.

She eyes the tickets once more, and then smiles as she finally accepts them. "Thank you Robin. You are a great friend."

"Yeah, I know," Robin sarcastically says with a wave of the hand. "Now go on, get out of here. Raven's probably just _waiting_ for something to get her away from that horrible TV show those two conned her into watching."

Starfire thinks it over, and decides to go ahead and wrap Robin into a great big hug. "Thank you," she says as she squeezes him, and he just smiles as lets it happen.

They share a brief mutual gaze of understanding, and then Starfire darts out of the room quicker than The Flash after having gas station coffee.

Robin just watches on with a sense of pride, not getting up from Starfire's bed. Because… It's cozy. Cozy enough to just… sort of lie down, curl himself into a fetal position, grab a hold of Snuggle-Me-Alfred, and try not to cry.

But then, cry a lot.

He gets a little crybaby bawling out, but then he has a thought.

"Huh. I wonder if Blackfire is still in town…"

* * *

Starfire makes her way into the living room, and discovers Cyborg and Beast Boy singing their very own "Upbeat Inspirational Song About Life" to Raven. They're really getting into it too. They have wigs, guitars, and plastic novelty glasses that would make the bois from BER jealous.

But Raven… is not amused. She just glowers at them with her familiar brand of disinterest as she slouches further and further down into the cushion of the couch, almost being sucked into it like one of her portals.

"Is it too late to tell Dad I wanna enslave the universe?" she grumbles.

Starfire hesitantly steps in between the unwelcome concert, and clears her throat to make herself heard through the cacophony.

" _Ahem._ Excuse me, Cyborg, Beast Boy…"

"Upbeat! Upbeat! You know it's super- Upbeat! Upbeat! The song is feelin'-" they continue to sing.

She grows restless waiting for them to silence…

"HEEEEEEEY!" she shouts like a banshee, actually blowing the glasses and wigs off of them like something from a criminally underrated daytime cartoon.

The boys just stand there, stunned, and Raven turns her head to see Starfire. She quickly looks away though, feeling herself becoming very, very, _very_ small.

"Raven?" Starfire quietly says, cautiously approaching her.

Realizing Starfire has beckoned for her attention, Raven finds the inner strength to respond to her… but not enough to look at her. If she wasn't in the revealing dress~

"Hey…" she simply says, almost as quietly as a church mouse.

Cyborg and Beast Boy just watch on with conspicuous curiosity, and maybe some inner fangirling.

Starfire takes a breath as she nervously twiddles her hands together, then holds up the movie tickets for the Azarathian girl to see.

"Friend Raven, would you wish to accompany me to the cinema tonight?" she asks. No jokes, no the's… just a question in need of a yes or no answer.

Of course, it is not so easy for Raven. Between the horrible earworm that Cyborg and Beast Boy bored into her brain, the sexiness of Star's ceremonial attire, and just _everything_ that has led up to this very moment… She's at a loss.

"You… You want to see a movie with me?" she gets out, almost out of instinct alone.

Cyborg and Beast Boy gayly watch on, making their fangirling obvious now as they gawk like geeks at the magic unfolding before them.

The ladies disregard them, and continue with their conversation.

"Yes. I would like to spend the night of leisures with you, very much so," Starfire calmly and shrewdly says to her confidante.

Raven struggles with herself for a moment, because it's still so sudden and unreal.

"But- but I thought-? Aren't you supposed to go out with Robin tonight?"

"That was the original intention, yes," Starfire answers, and she looks to the spazzing idiots behind Raven with a privied look much like they shared with one another.

They see it, and Beast Boy proceeds to grab a pillow and scream into it. Cyborg does one better. He picks up the _ottoman_ and gives it his sweet shipping shouts.

Starfire smiles at Raven now. "But I would prefer to spend my evening with you," she tells her.

Raven feels her heart begin fluttering in her chest. She realizes so many things at once; why the boys are being stupid, why she thinks she hears Robin crying, and maybe even why Starfire is smiling at her like this right now.

She could get upset about certain things, hell… she could turn the tower upside down if she wanted to. Literally and figuratively.

But she doesn't care about any of that. It doesn't have to matter.

What matters is, Starfire looks damn good, and she can go to the movie without actually watching the stupid thing.

So, with reddening cheeks, Raven smiles back.

"Sure. Let me go find something to wear."

* * *

 **Thanks as always for reading and being patient with my slow self.**

 **Okay, so I'm back in the spirit of Teen Titans, but I'll also admit, after going back and rereading previous chapters, I wasn't happy with where this story was headed. So, I changed plans, and know how I want this thing to end for reals this time.**

 **So if you feel like I butchered this story's continuity or the characters involved, yell at me. But I think you all will appreciate it in the long run. Teamwork makes the dream work!**

 **Also…**

 **Fuck Batman :D**


	12. Better

**Want some gay stuff to listen to? How about "Only One In Color" by Trapt and "Over and Over" by Three Days Grace. Super gay. Super me.**

 **Enjoy this one. It won't be hard. Trust me.**

* * *

The moon shines brightly over Jump City. Things are a cool quiet in the warm summer air, perfect for a night out in the never sleeping streets.

Especially for two lost souls wandering their way up its roads, walking silently side by side, lost in nearly identical thoughts of insecurities and doubts.

For Starfire, there's a strange sense of excitement beneath all of her queasiness. Sure, very little has been said since leaving the tower, and Raven seems more bashful than baby Bambi; but she's not _sad_ Raven anymore. That's a victory itself.

But there's potential for even more. She has her here to herself, dressed in a skintight black gown, one that was probably meant for a funeral or something morbid like that, but ironically makes her look stunning and beautiful, more so than usual anyway.

In fact, Starfire has had a very hard time looking away from her all evening. Normally she wouldn't mind telling her how gorgeous she is, or how great she is all together… but there's still this unspoken thing between them. The easy to identify, hard to describe tension.

But she's here. And they have time. All night if they need it.

Then there's Raven. Somehow, she manages to be even quieter than usual. And of course, she's had an equally tasking time trying to hide how enticing her companion is. Tameranians sure know how to clean up nice~

After all of these weeks of torturing herself, she finally has Starfire all alone, but she can't help feeling like she's around a stranger. Like that kiss was something to regret rather than remember, like their friendship was spoiled rotten, like there was no hope of moving past everything she had worked so hard for to be accepted by the four other Teen Titans.

And yet… she asked her for this. She _asked_ Raven to accompany her tonight…

Almost like a date.

They pass streetlight after streetlight, shop after shop. No people though. For a city that never sleeps, it sure seems to be resting tonight. Almost just for them.

But Starfire didn't invite her out tonight to go without words. And Raven didn't say yes to pine in familiarly cumbersome awkwardness.

Eventually, someone had to speak up.

And it was going to be…

"Starfire-" "Raven-" both girls begin at once.

Great. Now it was even weirder. But pride had to be swallowed, or the remainder of the evening would be one cringeworthy fumble after another.

"You go ahead," Raven politely suggests.

"No, you proceed. I insist," Starfire rebuts.

Case in point.

Raven takes a deep nasally breath, and puts aside the shaking feelings to say what she needs to say.

"Okay… Starfire… Why are we here? What is this? What are we doing right now?" she asks, trying her very best not to show the cracks.

"I- I do not understand? Your questions are quite vague," Starfire timidly responds.

Raven can't help it. It's as adorable as it is frightening, and she knows she has to explain herself now.

"I mean… You were supposed to go out with Robin tonight. Like… on a date," she responds. "But instead, you're here with me."

"You say that as if it is a bad thing," Starfire belatedly says back.

There's a pause on Raven's behalf too. Every explanation is going to get that much harder to get out.

But, it will be worth it. It has to be.

"Starfire, look at me. I'm wearing this- stupid dress… And you're here wearing this… this…"

"My dress is stupid as well?" she confusingly thinks aloud.

Adorable. _Terrifying._

And yet… a small smile creeps on Raven's face. "No… Not at all."

She takes a step back, because she has to create distance with what words she'll soon allow to linger into the air.

"You look wonderful. I think… I don't think you've ever looked better."

Starfire's eyes widen. Her cheeks redden, and she almost desperately takes hold of one of her sideburns as she nervously looks away from the other girl.

"Oh… Well… Thank you. Thank you very much…"

Raven has to look away to, but she feels something that could almost be considered courage swelling up inside of her. She's taken a little initiative so far, but this is Starfire. She knows she'll only do so much to press forward, for better reasons than what could be associated with most.

And if things are ever going to be the same, or better as Beast Boy said…

The truth needs to be set free.

"Starfire… I have a hard time seeing Robin changing his mind about going out with you. What happened?" she coyly begins.

Starfire feels herself tensing up with the sudden interrogation question.

"I… Uhm… It is not what you think…"

"I'm not mad," Raven begins. "Not at all," she softly adds. "Something tells me he found out about… Well… _You know…"_

Starfire purses her lips in with the realization that she's been exposed.

"I am sorry Raven. I could not keep the secret about our friend kiss," she admits.

Raven stoically stays beside herself. _Like she didn't already know that._

But, there's still plenty of air to clear, so she just attentively listens as Starfire provides her explanation.

"The truth is, I was quite flustered and confused. I was wholly unaware of this custom, and it was just so… _sudden,"_ she continues. "And after it happened, you just…"

Some of Raven's stoicism wanes as she hears the vehemence in Star's voice.

And despite the anguish it causes her to finish the sentence, Starfire pushes through.

"You pushed me away. I couldn't even look into your eyes without feeling a sense of guilt. That hurt me, Raven. It hurt me a lot."

Raven feels her heart begin to pound in her chest. The idea that she caused this pain for Starfire towers over _any_ of the prior discomfort she felt before.

"I'm sorry. I really mean that," she tells her, steeling herself for the words to come. "The truth is… I was scared."

"Scared?" Starfire simply repeats. Simply, but powerfully.

"Yes," Raven begins, "I was scared because… I was worried you wouldn't like me anymore."

She glues her eyes to the asphalt as she composes her next words, deciding not to overthink them, deciding to just speak from her fluttering heart.

"I know it sounds weird, but… the more we talk… the closer we get… I'm just worried I'll start to care more about you than you'll care about me. And I have to stop myself from expecting… something more…"

"I know I tend to separate myself from others. I lock myself in my room, and I tell myself that I'm better off alone. But the truth is, sometimes, I _hate_ being alone. As comfortable as it can be sometimes, I feel so much better having someone there who understands me. Someone who accepts me for who I am…"

"Especially you," she finishes, looking to Starfire, meeting her gorgeous green eyes.

Starfire looks back, becoming locked in those dark, pained irises.

They stop in their tracks, only looking to one another as the rest of world is silent around them.

"I'm sorry Starfire. I never meant to hurt you. I hope you know that," Raven apologizes once more.

And for a moment, nothing is said. Starfire just fixes her eyes on Raven, burning her with fervent gaze.

But slowly, ever so slowly… Starfire takes her hand, and rests it upon Raven's warm cheek. The Azarathian's eyes widen with the surprising touch, and she practically freezes.

"What- what are you doing?"

Without an answer, Starfire leans in, and plants a pleasant kiss onto Raven's lips.

Like their kiss before, it burns slow. The rest of the world disappears as Starfire closes her eyes, and Raven eventually allows her disbelief to subside to just enjoy this.

In fact, she slides her hands up her nimble waist, and allows them to stay there as she kisses her back.

This is no friend kiss. This is the kiss of two people in love.

Even so, Raven needs to know for sure. She needs to hear it from her lover's tongue.

"Starfire… Why?" she softly asks as she breaks the kiss.

With a quiet consideration in her eyes, Starfire answers.

"Because I wanted to show you how much I care about you. How much I love you."

Raven's eyes dampen as with rush of the moment catches up to her.

"Do you mean… Like a friend kiss?"

Belatedly, Starfire responds.

"I do not care what you call it. All I care about is that you know how much you mean to me. You are my very best friend."

"Perhaps… something more."

Raven's piteous, crestfallen expression molds into an endearing smile.

"I love you, Starfire."

Starfire smiles back, and the two girls join hands and interlock their fingers as they continue sharing this magical kiss.

A chilly summer evening's breeze sneaks up on them though, and they're forced to stop.

They smile at one another with blushing cheeks, and they nervously fidget their hands with the post-romance awkwardness.

It's a good awkward though.

"So…" Raven utters to break the tension. "You're a pretty great kisser."

Starfire giggles into her hand. "And you are not bad yourself."

They smile some more, enough to make a romance author sick typing that word, until Starfire excitedly gasps.

"Huah! The movie! We are going to miss it!" she cries as she remembers the two ticket stubs in her pocket.

She frantically flusters her hands around as she tries to find them, on her person, but Raven reaches out to stop her.

"You know… I didn't really wanna see a movie anyway," she says.

Starfire looks into her eyes once more, and Raven smirks as she rolls them.

"I'd much rather just… Show how much we love each other some more…" she flirts.

Starfire gets wide eyed at the prospect, and then, to Raven's surprise, very joyful.

"Oh, splendid!" she calls out. "Shall we go home and discuss our shared feelings of insecurity and loneliness?" she giddily suggests.

Raven winces with discomfort at that idea, then lets out a drawn out, "Uhhhhhhh…"

Starfire beams that endearing wide smile of hers though, and even rings out a puppy-eyed, "Pleeeeeeeeeease?"

Raven sighs. "Fine."

Starfire squeezes her into a great big bear hug, nearly lifting her date off her feet.

"Oh wonderful! I would much rather spend time with my beloved than watch the cringey romantic comedies!"

Raven feels her lips curving again, and playfully pushes Starfire off of her.

"Okay, lover girl. Let's go home. This dress is chafing me," Raven sardonically confesses, but it doesn't matter. What matters is, she's never felt happier.

She always knew that there was someone out there meant to be her companion, someone to share her inner most thoughts and concerns with. Someone she could rely on to make her smile when she wanted to frown. Someone to help her feel like she isn't alone.

And Starfire? She was just happy to hear Raven loved her.

Side by side, the two girls turned back to head home in the shining night. They were happy. They knew they'd come home to their loving friends, with all of the angst and anguish behind them.

After everything, they still had each other.

And in a crazy way, Beast Boy was right. Things would never be the same.

No.

They were better.

The End

* * *

 **Thanks so much for reading everyone. It really means a lot.**

 **I'll try to keep this short, but I do have to take a little time to reflect because, well, it's me XD.**

 **I love Teen Titans, and I love the pairing of StarRae, RaeFire, whatever you wanna call them. It's a pairing that I didn't have much luck finding stories for in the archive, so I decided to try my own hand at it, and frankly, I'm proud of what I accomplished.**

 **I'll admit that, motivation wasn't always there, and maybe some of the story suffered for that, but overall, I did want to create a fun and endearing story about these two being able to come together in a "canonical" sense.**

 **Also, I'll also admit that, I had another chapter planned for this, but it would've been really cracky, and a friend of mine convinced me it would have been a bad idea to go through with it XD. So, I decided this was the best place to stop, and we can just live the rest of our lives imagining that these two wonderful characters and the rest of the Titans being happy.**

 **Maybe I'll do an alternate ending chapter one day, but probably not, unless everyone on the site just comes together and begs me for one. Which, even if that did happen, I still have other projects to finish, put off for months, and cancel. Life is great :D**

 **Seriously though, thanks again to everyone who read this, or contributed to the success of any of my works. It's been a lot of fun, and hopefully we'll all hear from each other again someday. Take care of your bad selves until next time, true believers.**

 **-JamesSunderlandsPillow**


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